Lady Knights, Lady Red Spikers fight to stay alive

Games today:

(Rizal Memorial Coliseum)

1 p.m. — Letran vs San Beda

3 p.m. — JRU vs Saint Benilde

5 p.m. — NU vs Perpetual

Letran and San Beda University battle for survival in the race for the last playoffs berth in Pool A of the 2026 Shakey’s Super League (SSL) Unity Cup on Friday at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.

With the unbeaten reigning champion National University (NU) already through to the second round, four other squads in the pool are scrambling for the final bus ride to the next phase.

The Lady Knights and Lady Red Spikers are looking to get back on the winning track when they collide at 1 p.m. to open the busy triple-header playdate of the league’s centerpiece competition, backed by Shakey’s Pizza Parlor, Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken, Potato Corner and R&B Milk Tea.

Letran, the reigning National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) champion, suffered a 21-25, 14-25, 19-25, defeat at the hands of the Lady Bulldogs last week and slipped to a 1-1 win-loss slate tied with University of Perpetual Help System DALTA.

Winless San Beda, on the other hand, squandered a 2-1 match lead against Lady Altas in a sorry 30-28, 19-25, 25-23, 17-25, 14-16, loss last Saturday for a 0-2 slate, pushing the team on the brink of elimination.

Meanwhile, NU shoots for a group stage sweep when it takes on desperate Perpetual at 5 p.m.

The five-peat-seeking Lady Bulldogs rolled past their first three opponents without dropping a single set.

But head coach Norman Miguel is not taking the Lady Altas lightly.

“Honestly, that’s the No. 1 thing I always remind the team — never underestimate the skills of NCAA teams. I always tell them that they train just as hard to win. The level of competition in the NCAA is really rising,” he said.

In Pool B action, College of Saint Benilde and Jose Rizal University collide at 3 p.m., with the winner earning a lifeline to the group’s last playoff ticket.

Both squads dropped their opening assignments.

Only the top two teams in each pool will advance to the next phase of the tournament, supported by Smart, PusoP.com DICT, Executive Optical, Milo and Summit Natural Drinking Water.

Pool D’s University of the Philippines (2-0) and Adamson University (2-1), Far Eastern University (2-0) of Pool C and Pool B’s University of Santo Tomas (2-0) have also punched their way to the playoffs.