Hope CS, UST dispute Shakey's girls volley crown

MANILA, Philippines - Defending champion Hope Christian School and title favorite University of Santo Tomas knocked off University of Perpetual Help-Laguna in their semifinal showdown last Thursday to arrange a duel for the Shakey’s Girls Volleyball League NCR crown at the Arellano gym.

Denden Tan unloaded 18 kills as Hope CS turned back a stubborn UPHL, 25-22, 25-20, 25-18, in the first semifinal match among three teams which survived the knockout quarterfinal phase of the tournament sponsored by Shakey’s Pizza.

Carol Cerveza and Camille Cruz also stepped up for the defending champions as they joined forces with Tan to produce a combined 41-point output and complete a three-set victory for HCS, which booted out Imus Institute in the quarters of the event backed by Toby’s Sports, Dunkin’ Donuts, Mikasa and Asics.

UST, which ousted Angeles Univ. Foundation, ended UPHL’s hopes with a tough four-set win in the other semis encounter, putting its act together in the fourth frame to hack out a 25-18, 25-22, 16-25, 25-21 victory.

Alyssa Valdez stood in the forefront of UST attack, firing 21 points while drawing a solid 42-point effort from Kim Fajardo, Midori Hirotsuji and Alyja Santiago for the win.

Hope CS and UST dispute the championship at 1 p.m. today, also at the Arellano gym with the winner emerging as the NCR champion.

Hope and UST, meanwhile, will join the best teams from Bacolod, Cebu, Davao, Iloilo and Tacloban for the national championship in the Tournament of Champions in Tacloban, Leyte.