National University (NU) guns for a finals berth when it battles Far Eastern University (FEU) in the UAAP Season 86 women's volleyball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Saturday.
The Lady Bulldogs, who earned a twice-to-beat bonus in the Final Four after topping the eliminations with a 12-2 record, meet the Lady Tamaraws at 4 p.m.
AIM FOR FINALS BERTH National University's Michaela Belen (No. 4) tries to block a Far Eastern University's Jean Asis during the UAAP Season 86 women's volleyball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on April 24, 2024. NU won the match, 25-21, 25-19, 25-22. UAAP PHOTO
"Kapag narinig kasi yung twice-to-beat, parang nakakagaan siya sa pakiramdam ng mga player. Pero yun nga, hindi dapat kami umabot sa puntong magagamit namin yung twice-to-beat (When we hear the twice-to-beat, it seems to make the players feel better. But we shouldn't reach the point where we can use the twice-to-beat)," said skipper Michaela Belen, who scored 12 points in NU's 25-21, 25-19, 25-22 victory over FEU last April 24.
“Maganda lang siyang pakinggan sa mga player na ang sarap sa pakiramdam na twice-to-beat tayo kasi parang may suporta na nangyayari, pero hindi na namin papahantungin doon (It's only nice to listen to the players who feel good that we're twice-to-beat because it seems like there's support going on, but we're not going to stop there)," the Season 84 Rookie MVP added.
Meanwhile, University of Santo Tomas (UST) and De La Salle University will square off in the other seminal match at the Mall of Asia Arena on Sunday.
UST defeated De La Salle, 22-25, 25-23, 25-16, 25-15, last April 27 to end the elimination at 12-2. But it had to settle for No. 2 for having inferior points, 34-36, against NU in the first tiebreaker.
La Salle is at No. 3 with an 11-3 record.
In the men's division, NU battles La Salle at 2 p.m. in a playoff for No. 2, with the winner earning a twice-to-beat semis incentive. Both teams have 11-3 slates after the elimination round.
Top seed FEU takes on No. 4 UST in the other semis match at 2 p.m. on Sunday. The Tamaraws finished the elimination at 12-2 while the Golden Tigers have an 8-6 card. (PNA)
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