By MARK REY MONTEJO
College of Saint Benilde completed a rare four-peat after sweeping Colegio de San Juan de Letrán, 25-19, 25-22, 25-19, in Game 2 Finals of the NCAA Season 100 women’s volleyball tournament at the FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City Wednesday, June 11.
The Lady Blazers further cemented their status as the powerhouse in the distaff side of the grand old league and their dominant victory over the Lady Knights marked their fourth straight title and fifth overall.
CSB’s recent feat put the Lady Blazers along with the Letran Lady Knights and the San Sebastian Lady Stags, who did it thrice, as the only squads which won four consecutive crowns.
The Arnold Laniog-guided Benilde essayed a 26-28, 26-24, 25-16, 25-19 Game 1 win against Letran with Zamantha Nolasco showing the way with 21 points.
Despite Nolasco being limited to a nine-point output in the title-clinching game, Cristy Ondangan and Clydel Catarig stepped up with 13 and 11 points, respectively. Shahanna Lleses added eight.
Mycah Go, for her part, added nine points in her final game as a Lady Blazer before her stint with the ZUS Coffee Thunderbelles, who picked her as 17th overall in this year’s Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Rookie Draft.
A perfect exit, indeed, for Go as she was also named as this year’s Most Valuable Player, her second one, while winning her fourth NCAA crown.
Letran’s super rookie Vanessa Sarie had only 12 points, while Marie Nitura, sister of Adamson’s Shai, registered 11 in a losing cause.
It was a double whammy for Letran as its men’s team absorbed a 24-26, 25-21, 25-15, 25-17 loss to Arellano earlier.
The Chiefs put up a masterclass on both ends after a first-set stumble en route to their first crown since their debut 16 years ago.
Carl Berdal took the spotlight as he was named the Finals MVP after listing 16 points while Arman Guinto (17), Jiwen Sinuto (14), Anfernee Curamen (12), and Jake Pangilinan (10) provided the scoring support.
John Bautista paced Letran with 15 points.
