Benguet hosts 2011 intercollegiate volleyball championship

BENGUET gets another rare shot of hosting another national sporting event set to hit the court at the end of the month.

Benguet State University is home to the weeklong 2011 National Intercollegiate Volleyball Championship, tentatively set April 25 to 30 spearheaded by the Philippine Volleyball Federation.

Benguet Capitol will also be a venue in the weeklong tournament after several universities in Baguio City have yet to confirm their hosting.

The activity is an annual volleyball championship of the PVF, which is part of the grass-roots development program aimed to create opportunities for students to showcase and enhance their volleyball skills and abilities.

Also expected to return to the Summer Capital are men’s defending champion Rizal Technological University, which is gunning for its third straight championship; National College of Business Administration; and National University.

On the distaff side, defending champion De La Salle University will once again come up to the Summer Capital while the University of Perpetual Help, last year’s runner-up; newcomer University of Manila; and other squads from the UAAP are also expected to participate.

Local squads set to challenge the visiting squads are the University of the Cordilleras, the 24th Baguio–Benguet Educational Athletic League defending champion, in the women’s volleyball crown.

Saint Louis University, BBEAL’s men’s volleyball champion, and the University of Baguio are also joining the weeklong tournament.

There will be a single round robin in the preliminary round in both the men’s and women’s divisions with the top eight teams in each division advancing to the quarterfinal round.

The number 1 team after the quarters will then face the number 8 seed, the number 2 facing the number 7 seed, the number 3 going up against the number 6 seed and the number 4 seed battling the number 5 seed.

The winners of the knock-out matches will then advance to the semifinal round in hopes of entering the finals of the tournament.

The tournament also aims to give way for talent identification to be considered in the National Youth Volleyball Team. Roderick Osis