Unbeaten La Salle and University of Santo Tomas slug it out in an exciting knockout semifinal showdown in the 2024 Shakey’s Super League Collegiate Pre-season Championship Wednesday at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
The game starts at 6 p.m. following the 3:30 p.m. classification round tiff between College of Saint Benilde and University of the Philippines.
The Lady Spikers and Golden Tigresses booked seats in the do-or-die semis of the league’s centerpiece tournament backed by Shakey’s Pizza Parlor, GCash, Chery Tiggo, F2 Logistics, Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken, Potato Corner, R and B Milk Tea and Summit Water in contrasting fashion.
La Salle had to save two match points in a 25-18, 25-20, 20-25, 20-25, 17-15, scary win over archrival Ateneo de Manila University in the quarterfinal last Sunday.
The lethal troika of Angel Canino, 2023 National Invitationals Most Valuable Player Shavana Laput and Amie Provido rescued the twice-to-beat Lady Spikers to remain unscathed after seven outings.
La Salle, just a win away from a second finals appearance in the tournament after a runner-up finish in the inaugural edition two years ago, hopes to bring the same composure against UST, which dethroned the Lady Spikers in the Final Four of the UAAP Season 86 last May.
“This (quarterfinal) game, maganda ‘yung ibinigay na composure nito sa amin talaga. Ito ‘yung first five-set namin buong tournament and na-test namin na kaya namin. Pag-iigihan pa namin na maging mas composed kami,” Provido said.
On the other hand, the Tigresses cruised to their third straight semis stint after a quick work of University of the East, 25-22, 25-21, 25-21.
Angge Poyos, Regina Jurado, Kyla Cordora, Jonna Perdido and prized setter Cassie Carballo are out to lead UST back into the championship round after a runner-up finish last season.
Three-peat-seeking National University and undefeated Far Eastern University figure in the other semis pairing slated Saturday.
Meanwhile, the Lady Blazers and Fighting Maroons collide to advance into the next phase of the classification round of the competition which has Smart Sports, PLDT Fibr, Mikasa, Asics, Rebel Sports, Eurotel, Victory Liner, Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Philippine Sports Commission (PSC), and SM Tickets as technical partners.
