University of Santo Tomas in the UAAP Season 87 men’s volleyball tournament. Photo from UAAP Media.MANILA — University of Santo Tomas showed no signs of rust as it cruised to its fifth straight win in the UAAP Season 87 men’s volleyball tournament.
 
The Golden Spikers ran with a 25-17, 25-20, 25-11 sweep of also-ran University of the Philippines, Wednesday morning at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay to move up to solo third.

Coming off a nine-day Holy Week break, two-time UAAP MVP Josh Ybanez and rookie standout JJ Macam still flaunted their dominant form against the already-eliminated Fighting Maroons, steering the Golden Spikers to their fifth consecutive win for a 9-4 card to zone in on the third seed.

However, a De La Salle University win over Adamson University — which is ongoing as of publishing — the third seed in the Final Four will boil down to both La Salle and UST’s final elimination matches over the weekend.

And the road would not get any easier for both the Green Spikers and the Golden Spikers as La Salle will face top-seeded Far Eastern University on Saturday, while UST will gear up for a Season 86 Finals rematch against second-seeded National University on Sunday -- both at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.

“Yung preparation namin towards the last games of this tournament, medyo intense talaga. Sa ginawa ng mga bata ngayon, natuwa kaming mga coaches kasi yung mga pinagpractice namin during the Holy Week break, nakita naman namin, even though hindi pa siya ganoon kakinis,  pero may improvement pa kami na mapapakita,” UST assistant coach Benjamin Mape said.

Eager to finish the Fighting Maroons, the Golden Spikers raced to a commanding 10-point, 13-3 lead to open the third frame, fueled by a crosscourt hit by Jayrack de la Noche and two straight aces from  Macam.

That surge proved to be all the breathing room that UST needed as two consecutive aces from De la Noche and Macam, a Tommy Castrodes service error, a Ybañez off-the-block hit, and a combination play from the returning Alche Gupiteo sealed the Golden Spikers’ win.

In the second set, a down-the-line hit from Nigerian wing spiker Olayemi Raheem, a Ybañez attack error, and a Kobe Aca-ac block on Macam cut the Fighting Maroons’ deficit from 23-17 to 23-20, but Trevor Valera converted a timely quick hit while Angelo Lipata’s crosscourt hit sailed out, paving the way for UST’s two-set lead.

Pivotal in the Golden Spikers’ ninth win through 13 outings was the dominance they displayed in both the attack (47-23) and ace (10-0) departments, respectively.

Ybañez fueled UST with 15 points on 12 attacks and three aces with 10 excellent receptions, while Macam provided 11 points on eight attacks and three aces with nine excellent receptions.

Colinares also scored 11 points on nine attacks and two aces, while De la Noche added 10 points on nine attacks with four excellent receptions.

Team captain Dux Yambao tossed out 21 excellent sets in the sweep, while rookie libero Edriel Alabar contributed nine excellent digs and seven excellent receptions.

Heading into its final elimination game of Season 87 — a date with Adamson on Saturday at the Big Dome — UP will stay at sixth place, dropping its third straight game to fall to 3-10.

Raheem was the lone Fighting Maroon in double-digits with 10 points on nine attacks, while Milven Francisco chipped in six points in the losing effort.