BY ABBY TORALBA
DEFENDING champion College of Saint Benilde begins its title retention drive tomorrow against San Sebastian College as the 98th NCAA women’s volleyball tournament gets going at the San Andres Sports Complex in Manila.
The Lady Blazers and Lady Stags, hoping to start the single-round eliminations on a strong note, collide at noon, to be followed by the collision between Arellano University and Jose Rizal University at 2:30.
Last season, CSB completed a season sweep, dethroning the Lady Chiefs.
This time, the Lady Blazers will defend their title without the services of veteran open hitter Mycah Go.
Go, the reigning league MVP, suffered an ACL along with MCL and LCL injuries back in January during a practice match.
Despite the absence of Go, the Lady Blazers still have Gayle Pascual, Jade Gentapa, Cloanne Mondenedo, Michelle Gamit, Cristy Ondangan in their drive to keep the title in Taft.
During the offseason, both CSB and San Sebastian joined pre-season collegiate leagues like the Shakey’s Super League and the V-League Women’s Collegiate Challenge.
The Lady Blazers finished as third runner-up in the V-League, while San Sebastian failed to reach the podium in either league.
