Games Sunday (The Arena, San Juan)
2 p.m. — Lyceum vs St. Benilde
4 p.m. — SSC vs FEU

San Sebastian proved that its title win over College of St. Benilde in the recent NCAA war was no fluke as the SSC spikers waylaid the Lady Blazers side anew, 25-21, 25-19, 25-14, in their highly anticipated rematch in the Shakey’s V-League on Friday at The Arena in San Juan City.

While they had to go through the proverbial eye of the needle before claiming their fifth straight NCAA title, the SSC spikers hardly encountered trouble this time in winning their second straight game in the tournament presented by Shakey’s Pizza and organized by Sports Vision.

The defending champion SSC lasses again banked on Princess Cruz’s brilliant all-around performance and a formidable support cast in Margarita Pepito and Analyn Benito and Melissa Mirasol to reaffirm their mastery over the Lady Blazers.

Cruz was merciless at the net, pounding the CSB defense with 12 attacks while blocking three shots and dishing out three aces as SSC took its biggest lead of the game in the third set, 22-12.

Pepito made her presence felt with 12 points during the 67-minute skirmish while Benito had 10 and Mirasol made seven for SSC, which sent the Blazers to their second straight defeat in the tourney also backed by Mikasa, Mighty Bond, Oracare, and Accel.

In the first game, guest player Rachelle Anne Daquis erupted for season-best 22 hits as Far Eastern University fought back from a second set meltdown to clip Ateneo, 25-20, 23-25, 25-21, 25-19, and boost their bid for a quarterfinal berth.