Cagayan seeks victory No. 9

Cagayan province tries to rev up its drive for the top seeding when it battles Meralco in the Shakey’s V-League Season 10 Open Conference quarterfinals at Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

The Lady Rising Suns are gunning for a ninth straight victory at 4 p.m. against the Power Spikers, who are looking to stay alive in the fight for a place in the semifinals.

Smart-Maynilad seeks to continue its mastery of Philippine National Police when they clash at 2 p.m.

Smart has the inside track in the race for the two remaining semifinal berths, but the Net Spikers are also looking to challenge Cagayan and Army for the top 2 seeding in the Final Four.

The Lady Rising Suns repeated over Philippine Air Force last Tuesday to clinch a semifinal seat with four games to spare.

With a roster bannered by players coming off an international stint, Cagayan is favored. Thai reinforcement Kannika Thipachot is also hoping to bounce back after a limited stint the last time out.

Aiza Maizo and Angeli Tabaquero along with Adamson stars Shiela Pineda and Pau Soriano are also key cogs for the Lady Rising Suns.

The Power Spikers need to sweep their last four games and hope that Smart-Maynilad (5-3) and Air Force (5-4) won’t reach seven wins to force a playoff for the last Final Four berth.

Now armed with a souped-up roster, Smart-Maynilad is fancied to repeat over the Lady Patrollers.

Thai ace Lithawat Kesinee has normed 20 points in three games, firming up the Net Spikers’ frontline threat that includes Sue Roces, Gretchel Soltones and Maru Banaticla.

Janine Marciano, the third leading scorer in the league, and Frances Molina and Thai backup Sangmuang Patcharee are hoping to avert early elimination for the Lady Patrollers.