SSC, Army begin V-League title showdown

MANILA, Philippines - San Sebastian and Army start their best-of-three series for the Shakey’s V-League Open Conference crown today at The Arena in San Juan with odds just about even between two teams teeming with power-hitters.

That should put emphasis on net defense with Army and SSC also emerging the top blocking teams in the league from the elims to the quarters and the semis. The Lady Troopers had a 2.36 block per set norm and the Lady Stags just behind with a 2.16 average.

Premium will also be on the protagonists’ ability to neutralize each other’s attack with digs and counter set-ups with SSC’s Rubie de Leon and Army’s Cristina Salak taking center stage again in a match tipped to go down-to-the-wire.

SSC and Army split their two meetings in the conference sponsored by Shakey’s Pizza with the Lady Stags, seeking their second championship in five finals appearances, snatching a thriller of a five-setter in the elims and the Troopers getting back with a four-set romp in the quarters.

They finished tied after the elims and ended up tied again after the quarters then swept their respective Final Four opponents to reach the finals of the season-ending conference backed by Accel, Mikasa and Maynilad Water.

Gametime is at 4 p.m.

American import Lauren Ford and Thai reinforcement Jang Baulee are again expected to lead SSC’s bid with the former likely to clinch the MVP honors in the season-ending conference of the league organized by Sports Vision.

A consistent leader in spiking and scoring, Ford slowed down a bit in their last semis match with Navy, settling for just 10 hits while yielding the starring role to Baulee, who blasted the Lady Sailors with 23 points.

But Ford is tipped to assume her familiar role in the title series with coach Roger Gorayeb hoping to draw solid support from Jennifer Manzano, Joy Benito, Dafna Robiños, Jill Gustilo, Jennifer Salgado, Baulee and de Leon.

Army, however, boasts of a slew of hitters that could startle SSC’s net defense. In their last semis match against the Ateneo Lady Eagles, five Troopers churned out double-digit scores to underscore the team’s balanced offensive sock.

Coach Rico de Guzman has had the luxury of drawing firepower from a lot of players, including former MVPs Michelle Carolino and Mary Jean Balse, Rachel Ann Daquis, Marietta Carolino and Joanne Buñag, who are all expected to raise the level of their respective games in the title series.

What makes the team tougher is that Salak not only provides the set plays but also delivers the points, scoring 10 hits against the Eagles the last time out.

But it will all boil down to execution and defense.

Meanwhile, Ateneo and Navy open their own best-of-three playoff for third at 2 p.m. with the league to award the conference’s top players before the Army-SSC duel.

The Ateneo-Navy match will be telecast at 2 p.m. tomorrow (Monday) while the Army-SSC game will be shown Tuesday on NBN-4 and GMA-7’s international channels GMA Pinoy TV, GMA LifeTV and GMA News TV, according to the organized Sports Vision.