The UST Golden Spikers sweep the St. Benilde Blazers in the 2025 V-League Collegiate Challenge.
University of Santo Tomas fended off the challenge of debuting De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde to notch its third straight win, 25-21, 25-21, 30-28, in the 2025 V-League Collegiate Challenge preliminary round on Saturday at the Paco Arena Sports and Events Center in Manila.
GBoy De Vega showed leadership in the extended 33-minute third set to steer the Golden Spikers to the solo lead.
He tallied 15 points on 13 attacks and two blocks, including a crucial down-the-line hit that put UST at match point.
Moments later, Dux Yambao denied Paul Jordan at the net to seal the straight-sets victory.
"Medyo naging effective naman 'yung mga minor adjustments na pinag-ensayuhan namin the past week," said De Vega, who also contributed four digs and 15 excellent receptions.
"We actually focused on not starting slow; mas naging aggressive kami this time. So, we were able to get this straight-sets win kasi naniwala kami sa mga coaches namin na 'to able to start nang maayos 'yung game, you should be aggressive."
That aggressive start fueled UST’s control in the first two sets, though Benilde leaned on Reymark Betco and Rocky Motol to keep things close.
Yambao, however, orchestrated the offense with precision, finding De Vega and JJ Macam in transition.
The Golden Spikers also capitalized on clean passes and free balls, converting them into middle attacks with Trevor Valera and Sean Cruz delivering damage when given the right sets.
UST held a slim advantage in attacks, 40-35, and edged Benilde in blocks, 9-7, highlighted by Macam’s rejection of Betco in a key moment of the tight third frame.
Betco finished with 13 points on 13 attacks for the Blazers, while Motol was the other double-digit scorer with 11 markers.