Lady Falcons, Eagles start title duel

Manila, Philippines - Adamson and Ateneo begin their best-of-three showdown for the eighth Shakey’s V-League first conference crown today with the Lady Falcons out for a repeat and the Eagles seeking redemption at The Arena in San Juan City.

The Falcons swept the Eagles in the 2008 first conference finals to annex their first-ever crown then toppled the San Sebastian Lady Stags in last year’s second conference to line themselves up for a plausible back-to-back title romp.

But the Loyola-based squad is raring to get back at Adamson with the team peaking in time for the finals. The Eagles dominated the elims then bounced back from forfeiture by sweeping the National U Lady Bulldogs in the Final Four.

Adamson, on the other hand, swept the University of St. La Salle-Bacolod in their own side of the semis to likewise prime itself up against Ateneo in what promises to be an explosive showdown between two of the leading teams in the league sponsored by Shakey’s Pizza.

Gametime is at 4 p.m. For live streaming, log on to www.v-league.ph.

NU and USLS dispute third place honors at 2 p.m. before the league honors the conference’s top players in simple rites before the main showdown.

“We’re here to prove them wrong if that’s what the critics are saying (that Ateneo is an easy picking for Adamson),” said Ateneo coach Charo Soriano, seeking to deliver the elusive crown for the school on her rookie year.

The Eagles will need to toughen up on net defense to neutralize the power games of veteran guest players Michelle Laborte and Nerissa Bautista, who powered Adamson past Ateneo in their elims faceoff.

“We also need to slow down the pace because Adamson plays fast and tends to dictate the tempo of the game. We also need to improve on our coverage and our blocking,” said Soriano.

Adamson, which is expected to also draw added artillery from Angela Benting and Paulina Soriano, clinched its fourth finals appearance by sweeping the University of St. La Salle-Bacolod in their best-of-three semifinals affair.

“Man-for-man, I think we have the edge,” said Adamson mentor Dulce Pante, who will pin her hopes on Angela Benting and Paulina Soriano for the Falcons’ offensive threat.

Expected to carry the fight for Ateneo are Thai import Lithawat Kesinee, Gretchen Ho, Alyssa Valdez, Fille Cainglet and Dzi Gervacio, who just came back last time out from a two-game absence because of school requirement.