Sounds like they were stuck between a rock and a hard place
Reduce thrust - immediate reaction is a slight reduction in pitch due to thrust coupling but maybe they would slow down and recover enough elevator authority to begin a stable climb eventually
vs.
Maintain / increase thrust - maybe a slight pitch increase to start with but they will gain speed with limited elevator travel and no chance of overcoming the nose down moment from the stab
Option 1 probably works nicely at when you have altitude on your side...