UAAP volleyball: UST, La Salle face off in crucial clash

UST Tigresses in their game against La Salle Lady Spikers in the UAAP Season 86 women’s volleyball tournament. –UAAP PHOTO

De La Salle University (DLSU) and University of Santo Tomas (UST) will be seeing a lot of each other in the coming weeks, and whether that starts with Angel Canino’s comeback game for the defending champion Lady Spikers on Saturday is the question bigger than the result of the game itself.

Out of their last five games but seen involved in the warm-ups the last time, Canino is expected to finally suit up in the 6 p.m. game against the Golden Tigresses at Smart Araneta Coliseum and again make La Salle the feared side in the 86th Season of the UAAP women’s volleyball tournament.

UST, meanwhile, was never penciled to go this far with a plucky, youth-laden team, and coach KungFu Reyes has no qualms in the role his charges have played thus far.

HIGHLIGHTS: UAAP Season 86 volleyball April 27

“This game will decide which place we’ll be at,” Reyes said in Filipino as Santo Tomas and La Salle break a second place tie and the right to play with a twice-to-beat privilege in the Final Four. “Among the three teams (with National University and La Salle), we have been labeled as the gate-crashers since the start.

“We have no problem with that and we would like to play that role.”

Logical time?

La Salle’s Shevana Laput. –UAAP PHOTO

With the Lady Bulldogs already assured of No. 1 ranking and the first Final Four bonus because of a superior tiebreak total, the winner of the final game of the elimination round will wind up as the second seed and will play the loser in the semifinals.

And for La Salle, this seems to be the most logical time to bring Canino back, just to make sure that the team will have all hands on deck for the season’s most crucial grind.

SCHEDULE: UAAP Season 86 volleyball second round

“Her recovery is going well,” La Salle assistant coach Noel Orcullo had told media men in Filipino after routing Ateneo last weekend when Canino finally did the warmups. “Hopefully, she can return, if not against UST, definitely in the semifinals.”

The Lady Spikers’ only loss during Canino’s absence was against the Bulldogs as Shevana Laput and Thea Gagate have taken over the scoring responsibilities and leadership roles on the floor for La Salle.

“The only thing we need to do is have the will to win,” Orcullo went on. “We have been telling our players that if someone is out, someone must step up and just trust the system.”

READ: UAAP volleyball: UST heads into clash vs La Salle with Poyos healthy again

With Canino returning, La Salle will have its top gun back in harness and its most vocal leader.

Santo Tomas, meanwhile, has lost two games in the second round but will be shooting to repeat a five-set first round win over the Lady Spikers.

Rookie Angge Poyos seems to be back in top shape judging from the way she played the last time, and the Tigresses have a steady support cast for their prolific scorer led by Regina Jurado, Jonna Perdino and Cassie Carballo.

University of the Philippines and University of the East battle for pride in the 2 p.m. game.