University of Santo Tomas squandered a commanding two-set lead but held its nerve just in time to finally repel a determined Alpha Insurance squad, grinding out out a nerve-wracking 26-24, 25-22, 35-37, 19-25, 22-20 marathon victory in the 2025 Spikers’ Turf Invitational Conference on Friday at the Paco Arena.
With the game hanging in the balance, the Golden Spikers turned to their ever-reliable star Josh Ybañez, who hammered the final two points to complete their escape after a grueling two hours and 37 minutes of no-holds-barred volleyball.
The Alas Pilipinas libero and UST outside spiker first targeted the sideline, then unleashed a hit off the blockers to seal back-to-back wins for the Golden Spikers in the tournament organized by Sports Vision and supported by Alpha Insurance, Premiere EMS, Buffalo’s Wings N’ Things, and Arena Plus.
UST improved to 3-1, tying defending champion Cignal at second place. The Super Spikers, however, were still facing the FEU-DN Steel Tamaraws as of press time.
“Blangko na. Ang nasa isip ko lang isa lang — kapag umangat ang bola, papaluin ko lang talaga,” said Ybañez of his mindset in the final moments. “Of course, I’m always proud sa mga teammates ko and I’m so happy na we ended up getting the result that we want.”
Alpha Insurance refused to go down quietly. After yielding the first two frames, the Protectors roared back in a grueling third-set battle, erasing seven match points before JJ Javelona’s push shot and Vince Himzon’s block on Ybañez capped a marathon 37-35 win.
Himzon and Barbie San Andres then powered Alpha’s decisive 5-1 finishing kick in the fourth, turning a slim 20-18 edge into a six-point closeout to force a decider.
Riding that momentum, the Protectors seized two match points at 14-12 in the fifth, but Sherwin Umandal delivered an off-the-block kill before Rocky Motol misfired on an attack, extending the duel.
That opened the door for Ybañez to take over, delivering again in the clutch as UST finally escaped.
Al-Bukharie Sali paced UST with a career-high 28 points, while Ybañez finished with a stellar all-around outing of 20 points and 30 excellent receptions. Andrei Delicana chipped in 17 points, Trevor Valera added 14, and setter Dux Yambao orchestrated the offense with 33 excellent sets alongside six points.
Edriel Alabar also stood out on defense with 31 excellent receptions and 23 digs.
UST will next face unbeaten Criss Cross on Sunday before meeting Cignal on Wednesday.
For Alpha Insurance, JJ Javelona led the way with 22 points but was not fielded in the fifth set, while Himzon tallied 18 points. Don Nadera and San Andres added 15 and 11 points, respectively, as the Protectors took advantage of UST’s 45 unforced errors.
Alpha slipped to 2-2 for solo fifth and will try to bounce back against VNS on Wednesday, still at the Paco Arena.
