Case closed

National University (NU) allayed fears of diminished competitiveness from key departures and a sudden coaching shakeup with a dominating conquest of the 2025 Shakey’s Super League (SSL) Preseason Unity Cup.

Seasoned holdovers Vange Alinsug, Chams Maaya, playmaker Lams Lamina and defense specialist Shaira Jardio displayed solid leadership in proving that the rebuilding Lady Bulldogs pack the same powerful bite to complete a four-peat.

NU overcame the challenge of a strong field, punctuated by a nail-biting 22-25, 25-22, 25-27, 25-23, 15-10, escape over gritty University of Santo Tomas (UST) in Game 2 of the best-of-three finals on Saturday for an impressive 10-game sweep of the league’s centerpiece tournament.

The Lady Bulldogs also completed a season sweep for the second straight year after ruling the National Invitationals Davao Leg last August — a clear proof that they remain as one of the country’s top college women’s volleyball programs, if not the best.

NU passed the preseason test with flying colors, ushering in the dawn of a new breed of Lady Bulldogs following the exit of three-time University Athletic Association of the Philippines Most Valuable Player (MVP) Bella Belen, Alyssa Solomon, Sheena Toring and Erin Pangilinan after winning back-to-back UAAP titles early this year.

“Well, we have to work as a team now because we lost significant players. We have to fill in those shoes but to get there, we have to grow together. We have to be a team,” said head coach Regine Diego after winning a title in her first run as mentor of the Lady Bulldogs since replacing Sherwin Meneses last September.

“Last time, individually, we were very strong. This time, we can (still) do this as a team and that will help us defend the title,” she added.

Overall, NU went 13-0 this season, including its three-game domination of the National Invitationals, where prized rookie Sam Cantada emerged as Best Player, introducing herself as the team’s newest weapon.

Cantada connived with Alinsug, Kaye Bombita and Maaya on offense in the championship series clincher, finishing with 24 points as NU replicated a come-from-behind Game 1 win that also went the full five sets.

“First of all, we felt a bit pressured because our seniors have left. But I am happy because the young players were able to step up and trusted us, the coaches, (and) the system,” said Lamina, who was named tournament MVP and Best Setter.

Alinsug, who was given the tough task as NU skipper, expressed confidence in the current batch of Lady Bulldogs as they shift their focus to preparing for their main goal — a three-peat in the UAAP early next year.

“Hoping that this would serve as a lesson for us as we compete in the UAAP and we know that there are those who doubt us because we are rebuilding,” she added.

Meanwhile, staying true to its commitment of supporting and developing women’s volleyball at the grassroots level, long-time SSL partner Shakey’s Pizza Asia Ventures Inc. (SPAVI), through its Shakey’s Pizza SSL Bundle initiative, has donated a total of P11,845,100 to all 16 participating teams.

“We hope that those amounts will help the school programs and make their teams even stronger,” said SPAVI president and chief executive officer Vic Gregorio.

Ateneo de Manila University received the lion’s share of P1,201,925 in financial support, followed by Adamson (P1,163,275), Arellano University (P1,147,175), University of the Philippines (P862,725), Jose Rizal University (P850,375), NU (P692,925), Lyceum of the Philippines University (P689,575) and UST (P682,825).

University of Perpetual Help System Dalta got P666,725 followed by Far Eastern University (P636,125), Emilio Aguinaldo College (P597,625), San Sebastian College (P584,975), Mapua University (P576,675), Letran ((P519,425), College of Saint Benilde (P487,175) and San Beda University (P485,575).