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Back-to-back NCAA champion College of St. Benilde rolled past University of the East, 25-18, 25-21, 25-4, to kick off its playoff campaign with a bang in the Shakey's Super League (SSL) Collegiate Pre-Season Championship Season 2 on Sunday at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
The Lady Blazers needed only 68 minutes to pocket the easy win highlighted by a massive 21-demolition of the Lady Warriors in the third set to tie Adamson for the second spot with similar 3-1 cards in Pool F led by unbeaten Far Eastern U (4-0).
Cloanne Mondoñedo quarterbacked St. Benilde's fine-tuned offense with 15 excellent sets as all players barged into the scoring column led by Zamantha Nolasco with 12 points.
Nolasco had nine hits, three blocks and an ace while Jade Gentapa cashed in 11 points. Backstopping them was Gayle Pascual with eight points followed by five each from Michelle Gamit, Corrine Apostol and Wielyn Estoque.
Jerry Yee, who's serving as the newly-appointed mentor of UE, sat on St. Benilde's bench while his deputy Dr. Obet Vital called the shots for the Lady Warriors in the battle between his two teams.
“It (tournament break) a big help for us since some of the players were sick. We're happy with the win, the girls worked hard until the end,” said Mondoñedo.
In the SSL National Invitationals, St. Benilde absorbed an early exit in the quarterfinals but is poised for a deep run this time in the SSL Season 2 by Mikasa, Eurotel, Victory Liner, Summit Bottle Water, Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken, R and B Milk Tea, Potato Corner, Rebel Sports, Converge ICT Solutions, Genius Sports and United Auctioneers, Inc.
Ranged against a vastly-improved UE side, the Lady Blazers made it look so easy behind the defensive dominance of Nolasco, who patrolled the net with towering blocks after one another.
Her swat anchored St. Benilde's 17-11 rally in the first set from a close duel heading home followed by another clinching block late in the second set, where the team unleashed a 3-0 closeout from a narrow 22-21 cushion.
It was all Lady Blazers from there on, allowing only four points in a magnificent volleyball masterclass.
Rookie Casiey Dongallo fired eight points to serve as the only bright spot for the Lady Warriors, who slid to 2-2.
Meanwhile, on Saturday night, reigning champion National U tamed the University of Santo Tomas to stay undefeated as Arellano pulled the rug from under Ateneo, both in straight sets in Pool E.
The Lady Bulldogs swept the Golden Tigresses, 25-21, 25-18, 25-21, in the battle of unbeaten teams to claim a solo lead in Pool E with a 4-0 record.
The Golden Tigresses slid to 3-1, tied with the Lady Chiefs following their gigantic 25-21, 25-18, 25-21 upset of the Blue Eagles (2-2).
All eight teams in the playoffs carry over their standings from the preliminary round for ranking in the quarterfinals, where the higher-ranked squads will sport twice-to-beat incentives.
All games will be accessible across all platforms live and on-demand through the social media pages of Plus Network and SSL with Solar Sports, Blast TV and Aliw Channel 23 as TV partners.
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