COLLEGIATE star Michaelo Buddin continues to make noise in the international scene with the Alas Pilipinas national men’s volleyball team after he bagged another individual award in the recently concluded 4th SEA V.League second Leg over the weekend in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

Buddin, 23, an incoming junior for National University, was named the First Best Outside Hitter in the three-day competition for his solid showing with the Nationals.

A first timer in the national team, it was Buddin’s back-to-back Best Outside Hitter in the tilt. He received the same accolade in the first leg earlier this month.

The Philippines won the bronze medal thanks to Buddin along with Louie Ramirez, Jade Disquitado, skipper Kim Malabunga, EJ Casana, Peng Taguibolos and Vince Lorenzo.

The Bryan Bagunas-less Alas men outlasted Vietnam 27-25, 14-25, 22-25, 25-21, 15-12, in the battle for third and wrapped up its campaign with a 1-2 slate.

This was also the second consecutive bronze medal for Alas coach Angiolino Frigoni, who took over at the helm of Alas this month.

Thailand beat Indonesia 25-20, 26-24, 22-25, 28-26 to rule the tourney.

With its victory, Thailand swept this year’s first and second legs of the four-nation meet with a total of six victories.

Napadet Bhinijdee of Thailand bagged the MVP and Best Opposite Spiker awards while teammates Kissada Nilsawai and Tanapat Charoensuk received the Second-Best Middle Blockers and Best Libero plum, respectively.

Indonesians Dio Zulfikri and Farhan Halim were named Best Setter and Second Best Outside Hitter as Vietnamese Duy Tuyen Tran was given with the Second Best Outside Hitter plum.

THE Alas Pilipinas national men’s volleyball team replicated its bronze medal finish in 4th SEA V.League after surviving Vietnam 27-25, 14-25, 22-25, 25-21, 15-12 yesterday in the second leg at the Gor Uny Hall in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

Michaelo Buddin, Jade Disquitado, Louie Ramirez, Peng Taguibolos, EJ Casana, and skipper Kim Malabunga shone for the Philippines which wrapped up its campaign with a 1-2 record.

The Angiolino Frigoni-mentored Nationals lost to Indonesia last Friday and to first Leg champion Thailand two days back, both in straight sets.

Turning the tables around after taking the fourth frame and extending the match to a decider, Alas Pilipinas shrugged off a slow start in the fifth set where it trailed 3-6 before Buddin powered the Filipino spikers to a 7-6 lead.

The Philippines went on a 5-0 run to make it 11-8, but the Vietnamese crew cut it to 11-12 courtesy of Phan Van Hiep.

Wing spiker Ramirez halted Vietnam’s rally with a cross court hit 13-11 as Disquitado put the Philippines to match point after an off the block hit.

After a service error from the Philippines aside, Disquitado finished the job with an attack catching another block touch from Vietnam 15-12.

Alas men won the bronze without erstwhile team captain Bryan Bagunas, who suffered an injury during the first Leg of the competition.

ANGELINE Poyos dropped 22 points to propel University of Santo Tomas to a 25-16, 19-25, 14-25, 25-22, 15-12 decision over College of St. Benilde yesterday in the V-League Collegiate Challenge women’s division at the Paco Arena in Manila.

The Golden Tigresses remained on top with a 4-0 mark while bolstering their semifinals chances, thanks to sophomore Poyos who also had 10 digs and five excellent receptions.

Lefty spikers Jonna Perdido and Regina Jurado also contributed 14 and 11 points, respectively, for the Espana-based crew which moved two wins of an eliminations sweep.

“Halos lahat very challenging iyong mga laro, pero mas nakaka-challenge is paano kami makakabounce back after two (straight) set losses. Maganda, at least naka-recover kami.

Iyon naman ang sinasabi namin sa players kanina–control the controllable, magkaroon ng composure in times na hindi sumasabay sa amin iyong momentum,” UST coach Kungfu Reyes said.

“Na-overcome naman namin, iyong palitan namin ng tao, may mga tumatama, minsan, may mga hindi nagco-contribute sa gusto namin mangyari. Again, iyong maturity in certain situations, at least nakukuha namin, regardless of the result. Importante is kung paano sila nagrreact doon sa mga instructions namin,” he added.

Outside hitter Wielyn Estoque tallied a game-high 31 points for the Lady Blazers, while Rhea Densing had 14 markers. Mary Grace Borromeo and Zam Nolasco chipped in 11 and 10 points, respectively, for CSB.

The Lady Blazers fell to 2-3.

In the second match, meanwhile, Far Eastern University trounced Letran 25-16, 25-22, 25-15.

CREAMLINE made short work of also-ran ZUS Coffee 25-17, 25-15, 25-22 yesterday to march into the quarterfinals on a high note in the PVL Reinforced Conference at The Arena in San Juan.

The Cool Smashers cruised to the runaway win against the Thunderbelles and fielded all of their players, with American import Erica Staunton firing with 17 points.

Outside hitter Bernadeth Pons also delivered with 11 markers, 12 digs, and six excellent receptions while Lorie Bernardo scored eight.

Libero Kyla Atienza had 11 digs.

Creamline, despite not having stars Alyssa Valdez, Tots Carlos and Jema Galanza so far in the tourney, wrapped up its preliminary campaign with a 6-2 card.

The eight-time league champions will be the third-ranked team in the knockout quarterfinals, battling sixth-placed Capital1 Solar Spikers who are making their first-ever playoffs appearance in the PVL.

“Siyempre happy kami na nanalo kami ngayon papasok na kami sa quarterfinals, so iyong momentum nandoon,” Cool Smashers coach Sherwin Meneses said.

“Ready naman kami doon sa lahat ng challenge na mangyayari. Ang importante lang talaga is iyong determinasyon namin manalo, mag-focus sa ginagawa. Lalo na knockout game lang iyong mangyayari so trust lang namin sa isa’t isa para makuha namin iyong quarterfinals,” he added.

Japanese reinforcement Asaka Tamaru was the lone bright spot for ZUS Coffee with16 markers and 14 digs.

PLDT and Chery Tiggo still have an opportunity to tie Creamline at 6-2, but the Cool Smashers hold a superior total points tally of 20 in case of a tie.

The High Speed Hitters, still in action against the Choco Mucho Flying Titans at press time, can only reach a maximum of 19 points, while the Crossovers, who are scheduled to play the Petro Gazz Angels later, can accumulate a maximum of 18 points.

“We’re ready, sa lahat ng challenges na mangyayari. Ang importante lang talaga is yung determination namin na manalo,” said Creamline coach Sherwin Meneses. “Lalo na knockout game, so, trust lang namin sa isa’t isa.”

MAKE way for the UAAP’s own home.

The UAAP and Akari Lighting & Technology Corp. yesterday forged a groundbreaking partnership to build the “Home of the UAAP”– a state-of-the-art facility in Pasig.

The memorandum of agreement was signed at the Atencio-Libunao Hall of University of the Philippines Diliman, marking a new era for the UAAP and varsity sports.

The project, set to be built over 1.8 hectares, seeks to provide a central venue for UAAP events, with a seating capacity of 6,000 fans.

The UAAP Board of Trustees and Managing Directors recognized the need for a dedicated facility to support the league’s growing demands and future aspirations.

To bring this vision to life, they appointed UAAP Season 85 President Fr. Aldrin Suan, CM of Adamson University, as chairperson of the negotiating panel for the “Home of the UAAP.”

Discussions between Akari and the UAAP began in March 2023.

By May 2023, the concept design was unveiled by ASYA Design Partner, headed by principal architect Albert Yu.

Akari chief executive officer Christopher Tiu emphasized the significance of the collaboration.

“At Akari, we believe in building legacies that go beyond lighting solutions. This Home of the UAAP project is our way of supporting grassroots sports development, where young student-athletes can grow, excel, and shine on the national stage,” Tui said. “I am honored that Akari is playing a pivotal role in shaping the future of varsity sports in the Philippines.”

Construction is set to commence soon, with a targeted completion timeline of three years.

NATIONAL University will gun for a second straight title with a veteran champion coach.

The Lady Bulldogs tapped Sherwin Meneses as their new tactician in their title-retention bid in the 87th UAAP women’s volleyball tournament.

Meneses will replace Norman Miguel, who led NU’s successful bid to regain the crown this year but stepped down earlier this month.

Meneses, 42, will return to the UAAP after eight years when he handled Adamson University.

The Lady Bulldogs are expected to be bannered by aces Bella Belen, Alyssa Solomon, Arah Panique, Camila Lamina, and Vange Alinsug.

A five-time PVL champion coach, with Creamline, Meneses opted not to confirm or deny the coaching move pending NU’s official announcement.

NU athletic director Otie Camangian could not be reached for comment yesterday.

This will be the Lady Bulldogs’ third coaching change in three consecutive UAAP seasons since the 85th edition of the volley wars.

The Lady Bulldogs are expected to represent the country in the VTV Cup which will be held in Vietnam later this month.

NU’s grit will be tested when it battles the likes of Vietnam’s national team, Indonesia national team, Japan’s Aranmare Yamagata, Kazakhstan’s Kuaynsh VC, Expressway Hipass of Korea, Taiwanese club and former PVL finalist King Whale Taipei, Henan Shuanghui from China and Korabelka from Russia.

DEFENDING champion La Salle downed Ateneo 25-21, 31-29, 25-19 yesterday for its fourth straight win in the preliminaries of the V-League Collegiate Challenge men’s division, at the Paco Arena in Manila.

The Green Spikers rose to 4-0 behind Glen Ventura and Eugene Gloria who tallied 16 and 13 points, respectively.

Joshua Magalaman chipped in nine points for La Salle while setter Jerico Adajar had 16 excellent sets, three digs and three markers.

“I’m sure prepared iyong Ateneo with us pero ganoon pa man, may mga lapses kaming na-encounter,” Green Spikers coach Jose Roque said. “Siguro, it’s more on kailangan talaga namin daanan iyong ganong mga lapses.

“May mga times kasi na super overwhelmed ng team, siguro I keep them reminded lang na kailangan hanggang hindi tapos iyong set, tapusin ninyo,” he added.

Jian Salarzon was the lone bright spot for the Blue Eagles who slipped to 1-3 with 15 points.

“Ganoon din, kung paano namin pinaghandaan itong mga past few teams like from Letran to Ateneo, ganoon lang din,” Roque said. “We’ll make sure iyong lapses na na-encounter namin ngayon, mabago namin para at least, maihanda namin sa next game.

“Through training talaga. Mostly ang nakita naming mga errors diyan ay sa service.

Talagang dadaanan namin iyan sa training. Hindi naman kami nagkukulang pagdating doon, siguro it’s more on making sure iyong ginagawa namin sa training ay talagang maayos, hindi lang just to throw or hit the ball.”