The order is clear as University of Santo Tomas (UST) aims to complete the stepladder Final Four there and then without any complications against reigning champion National University (NU) at the close of the UAAP Season 88 women’s volleyball eliminations on Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
At 8-5, the UST Golden Tigresses hold their own fate in sealing the fourth seed and eluding a tie with the Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws (7-6) with a win against the NU Lady Bulldogs in the main game at 5 p.m. FEU, at 3 p.m., needs a win against also-ran Ateneo de Manila University (2-11) and a loss by Santo Tomas in order to forge a knockout for the fourth seed.
NU (9-4) and Adamson (9-5) are already in as De La Salle University turned the traditional Final Four into a rare stepladder one after a 14-0 sweep. It’s the school’s first sweep since 2014 and the first in the league since the 16-0 feat of NU in 2022 led by the legend Bella Belen.
Adamson University is also on the lookout for the remaining duels, sporting a chance to tie NU for the second seed if Santo Tomas pulls off an upset.
The Golden Tigresses are locked at No. 4 even with a win with inferior points compared to the Lady Bulldogs and Lady Falcons given a three-way tie at 9-5, thus facing the loser of their possible duel for the No. 2 seed in the first phase of the stepladder.
And all of these scenarios depend on the Golden Tigresses alone.
But the vengeful NU is not keen on handing it on a silver platter, especially with its own need to seal the second seed for a bye in the stepladder against the winner of the first knockout stage.
If NU beats UST and FEU loses to Ateneo, the step-ladder pairings will be finalized: NU finishes at 10-4 and earns a bye to the second phase, awaiting the winner of the Adamson–UST knockout match for a Finals berth against La Salle, while FEU is eliminated.
With a possible playoff against FEU—whom they have beaten twice this season—for the final spot, assistant coach Yani Fernandez emphasized the need for UST to elevate its level against NU, especially after the Lady Bulldogs’ tough loss to La Salle.
“So, yun, challenge namin sa mga bata na gusto nyo pa bang mag-playoff for No. 4? Or kunin na natin yung spot na yun? So, challenge ulit sa team na ibigay yung 101% nila sa Wednesday game,” said Fernandez after UST defeated University of the Philippines, 23-25, 25-21, 25-22, 25-19, last Sunday.
Angge Poyos, the league’s second-best scorer behind Adamson ace Shai Nitura, stressed that the Tigresses will need a collective effort to finish the eliminations strong.
“For me, mahirap yung situation, pero for us players, ang need lang talaga namin is tiyagain namin. Kasi nandito na kami sa situation na to, and patapos na yung season. Yung patience sa sarili at sa team, yun yung puhunan namin para matapos yung season nang maayos—and syempre makapasok sa Final Four, and mag-overachieve if makapasok man sa Finals,” Poyos said.
In the men’s division featuring a preview of sealed Final Four duels, Santo Tomas (9-4) also has its own aspirations of forcing a knockout with five-peat champion NU (10-3) at 11 a.m. for the second spot and a win-once bonus while FEU (12-1) and Ateneo (7-6) collide at 9 a.m.
