by Jonas Terrado
Games Today (Mall of Asia Arena)
12 noon – Adamson vs NU (Men’s)
4 p.m. – UST vs La Salle (Women’s)
University of Santo Tomas tries to put an end to La Salle’s three-year title reign today in the UAAP women’s volleyball Final Four at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Tigresses, who carried a twice-to-beat advantage, hope to finish off the Lady Spikers at 4 p.m. and advance to their first finals appearance in eight years.
Led by the explosive Sisi Rondina and Eya Laure, UST earned the Final Four bonus with a 25-14, 25-23, 23-25, 25-19 over La Salle in Wednesday’s playoff for the No. 2 seed at The Arena in San Juan City.
UST’s victory put La Salle in unfamiliar territory, needing to win twice in order to secure an 11th straight appearance in the league’s biggest stage.
Rondina, who fired 29 points in the playoff, is expected to put on the same display against the Lady Spikers.
But La Salle coach Ramil de Jesus is keen on making his team sharper and force a knockout game on Wednesday in San Juan.
The winner of the UST-La Salle semis will face either top seed Ateneo or No. 4 Far Eastern University in a best-of-three title showdown.
Ateneo, which carries a twice-to-beat edge, was seeking to eliminate FEU in their game being played at presstime at MOA.
Meanwhile, defending champion National University aims to secure a place in the finals of the men’s division against Final Four foe Adamson at 12 noon.
