Local volleyball gets faster, tougher, and fiercer as the Spikers’ Turf resumes after a long hiatus with seven teams all set for a duel of power and speed in the Open Conference blasting off Tuesday (Aug. 30) at the Paco Arena in Manila.
Reigning back-to-back champion Cignal heads the crack field that includes returnees Philippine Army, PGJC-Navy, and VNS-One Alicia, school-based clubs National University-Sta. Elena and Ateneo-Fudgee Barr, and newcomer Sta. Rosa City.
Format is a single round robin elims with the top four teams advancing to the semifinals, another round robin phase. The top two will dispute the crown in a best-of-three series while the last two will clash for the bronze medal.
The HD Spikers, who beat the Air Force Jet Spikers twice to claim the Reinforced and Open crowns in 2019 before the country’s first and only men’s volley league, which Sports Vision launched in 2015, took a long break due to the pandemic, are again expected to rely on the talented duo of Marck Espejo and Ysay Marasigan when they kick off their drive for a sixth franchise title on Tuesday against the young Sta. Rosa Lions.
They clash in the 2:30 p.m. opener with the One Alicia side, led by Ish Polvorosa, testing the Ateneo-Fudgee Barr’s mettle at 5:30 p.m.
The Nationals, made up of the core of the reigning UAAP champions Bulldogs, will take on Patrick Rojas and the Troopers on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. while Ateneo-Fudgee Barr goes up against Navy, bannered by the hard-hitting duo of Jau Umandal and Joven Dela Vega, at 5:30 p.m.
The semis are scheduled to start on Sept. 24 with the finals slated on Oct. 1.
Volleyball has hogged the spotlight the past two months with the conclusion of the Premier Volleyball League Open Conference and the ongoing Asian Volleyball Confederation Women’s Championship with the Philippines, represented by PVL champion Creamline, bracing for an uphill battle against a fancied Thailand side in the quarterfinals tomorrow.
The PVL Reinforced Conference, meanwhile, is set to unfold in October.
