Games today:
(Mall of Asia Arena)
10 a.m. — NU vs UE (m)
12 p.m. — UST vs Adamson (m)
2 p.m. — NU vs UE (w)
4 p.m. — UST vs Adamson (w)
University of Santo Tomas (UST) seeks to regain its winning ways and secure a place in the Final Four when it faces Adamson University in the resumption of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 86 women’s volleyball tournament today at the SM Mall of Asia Arena. The Tigresses hope that the Lenten break had them recharged and refocused, especially with the rough patches that they encountered after sweeping the first round. After surviving Ateneo in five sets to open the second round, UST absorbed its first loss of the season with a 25-23, 17-25, 21-25, 20-25 setback to National University (NU) last 23 March. Expect the Tigresses to use their defeat to the Lady Bulldogs as a motivation to regain their winning form in the 4 p.m. showdown with the Lady Falcons. “We learned a lot this time,” said UST coach Kungfu Reyes, who is out to steer his team to its fourth consecutive Final Four appearance. “The best thing is that we experienced losing as early as the second game of the second round. At least we have now identified our weaknesses.” As the rest of the field were already able to figure out the Tigresses’ tendencies which led to their eight straight wins, Reyes wanted his troops to show grit at this crucial point of the season. UST is also trying to gain the needed cushion over defending champion De La Salle University (7-1) and NU (7-2) in the race for the twice-to-beat slots in the Final Four. With a 2-6 record, the Lady Falcons need to play with a sense of urgency from now on to salvage their season. The Lady Bulldogs, meanwhile, hope that their biggest win of the season against the Tigresses will keep them motivated. As NU braces for its 2 p.m. showdown with upstart University of the East (UE), Bella Belen underscored her squad’s drive to win, which was a game-changer after a sluggish start. “Every game needs improvement. We have to improve the lapses that we had in our previous games,” said Belen, who is No. 3 in scoring behind rookies Angge Poyos of UST and Casiey Dongallo of UE. The Lady Warriors, meanwhile, are currently level with the Lady Falcons in sixth place at 2-6, just behind the Blue Eagles, who displayed tremendous improvement in the second round to move up to fifth with a 3-6 record.
