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Source: gmanews.tv

-- Two of the most popular women’s collegiate volleyball teams collide Tuesday in the main game of the quadruple header in the 72nd UAAP at The Arena in San Juan City.

Reigning UAAP women’s titlist De La Salle University faces Shakey’s V-League Season 6 back-to-back champion University of Santo Tomas in the 4 p.m. main game after the first two men’s division matches and one women’s contest.

La Salle skipped the V-League’s last two conferences making their fans become more eager to see how the Lady Archers can compete now that they will be playing minus last season’s most valuable player (MVP) Manilla Santos, and veteran spikers Celine Hernandez and Michelle Datuin.

But despite the departure of La Salle’s three key players, experts still pick the Lady Archers as one of the teams to beat this season boasting of veteran players led by last year’s best blocker Jacqueline Alarca, Stephanie Mercado, Charleen Cruz, Kaye Martinez and libero Melissa Gohing.

And that prediction will be put to a test this early as they will be pitted with the league’s most winningest squad who are out to regain the title they last held in 2007.

"Ito talagang UAAP ang pinaghandaan namin. Kaya naman ini-expect ko na mas tataas pa ang level at intensity ng laro ng mga players namin pagdating ng UAAP," said UST coach Cesael De Los Santos .

UST defeated La Salle in the 2009 University Games finals in Bacolod City but De Los Santos said that victory cannot be considered as a gauge as far as their opponents’ real strength is concerned.

"Malakas ang La Salle kaya kailangan talagang paghandaan. Hindi porke tinalo namin sila sa Uni-Games, ibig sabihin nun ay kayang-kaya na namin sila," said De Los Santos.

V-League Season 6 second conference and finals MVP Aiza Maizo is expected to lead the Tigresses’ campaign together with the returning Angeli Tabaquero, promising rookie Maruja Banaticla, Maika Ortiz, Judy Anne Caballejo and Rhea Katrina Dimaculangan.

In the other women’s match, Adamson takes on Far Eastern U at 2 p.m. after the first two games in the men’s division featuring Adamson and University of the East at 9 a.m. to be followed by the FEU-National University tussle at 11 a.m.