Pinoy Spikers (Philippine Spike)

THE UAAP on Tuesday announced that the beach volleyball tournament, a first semester event, is tentatively slated to open on August 7-8 at the UE Caloocan sand courts.

The scheduled was announced by UAAP Season 73 president Bro. Bernard Oca, FSC in a media briefing held yesterday at the La Salle-Taft campus in Malate, Manila.

This is the fourth time that the beach volleyball games will be held at the Caloocan venue, which is undergoing renovation. Last season, Adamson’s Angela Benting and Lizlee Ann Gata bagged the women’s beach volley crown, while University of Santo Tomas, starring

Henry Pecaña and Jayson Ramos, took the men’s beach volley tiara.

The new season of the UAAP, which La Salle will host for the third time since joining the league in 1986, will open on July 10 with the basketball competitions at the Araneta Coliseum. Indoor volleyball, which has gaining loyal following in the past few
years, will be held again on second semester. (TJ)

PLAYING like there’s no tomorrow, Thai import Jeng Bualee banged in 27 hits as San Sebastian College forced a finals decider by nipping defending champion University of Santo Tomas, 21-25, 25-16, 15-25, 25-20, 15-13, in the Shakey’s
V-League first conference Tuesday at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

Game 3 is set tomorrow at the same venue. “Gusto niya (Bualee) talagang manalo.  Kailangan talaga naming manalo
at ibinuhos nila ang lahat,” said Lady Stags mentor Roger Gorayeb. In her four finals stints for San Sebastian since 2006, Bualee could only end up as a ‘bridesmaid’.

Joy Benito, the tournament’s Most Improved Player, also stepped up for the Lady Stags by scoring 20 hits, including the match-winning kill. Guest player Suzanne Roces and rookie Dafna Robiños also delivered for San Sebastian by combining 23 points.

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RANGED against the power-hitting Thai imports, University of Santo Tomasteam captain Aiza Maizo is now hard-pressed to win a second consecutive Shakey’s V-League MVP award.

Lyceum’s Tip Santrong continue to lord it over in the scoring department with 185 points, while compatriots Jeng Bualee of San Sebastian ollege and Ateneo’s Sontaya Keawbundit are in second and third place with 178 and 162 points, respectively.

Maizo is in fourth spot with 154 points, while vastly-improved Joy Cases of the Lady Pirates round up the ‘Top 5’ with 137 points.

But despite her MVP-worthy performance, Santrong failed to power Lyceum to a breakthrough championship stint.

The Tigresses and the Lady Stags will meet in the best-of-three finals series which will begin Sunday at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

Bualee is now favored to win a second MVP award, but the Thai standout wants nothing more but a championship for San Sebastian.

Since he became the resident Lady Stags reinforcement four years ago, Bualee, the 2007 first conference MVP, has never tasted a title in all of her four championship stints.

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ATENEO guest player Charo Soriano suffered an ACL injury based on the MRI findings conducted hours after a 10-25, 25-23, 25-18, 27-29, 6-15 loss to defending champion University of Santo Tomas at the end of the quarterfinals last Thursday at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

Doctors are currently looking for a second opinion regarding on extent of Soriano’s injury. She will be operated next week.

With the 5-foot-7 Soriano virtually out of the conference – and the season, Ateneo is on a lookout to hire a new guest player in time for tomorrow’s semifinals, where the Katipunan-based spikers will meetSan Sebastian College.

After losing Soriano, the Lady Eagles within match point, 24-22, before the Tigresses rallied to send the game to a fifth frame.

The Tigresses dominated the decider en route in completing a three-game sweep of Group II. UST will face Lyceum in the other ‘Final Four’ pairing. (TJ)