Manila: Teams from Vietnam and Australia are joining four of the country's best squads in the 2026 Shakey's Collegiate National Invitationals, which unfold at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium on Sunday. NCAA Season 101 champion Letran College takes on Southern Storm Melbourne at 1 p.m., followed by the match between UAAP Season 88 bronze medalist University of Santo Tomas (UST) and four-time National Athletic Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities (NAASCU) champion Enderun College at 3 p.m.
According to Philippines News Agency, the College of Saint Benilde, the NCAA Season 101 runner-up, battles Ho Chi Minh City Volleyball Club in the nightcap of the weeklong competition backed by Shakey's Pizza Parlor, Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken, Potato Corner, and R and B Milk Tea. Judiel Nitura, Verenicce Colendra, and Joralyn Panangin banner the Lady Knights, who will miss the services of veterans Gia Maquillang and Vanessa Sarie due to knee and right shoulder injuries, respectively.
"Our biggest goal is to become a better team every game. We want to maximize this opportunity against strong local and international teams, because we have opponents from Australia and Vietnam," Letran assistant coach Mayeth Carolino said during the event's launch at Shakey's Malate in Manila on Friday. "The local teams are also strong because Benilde and UST are there, and there is Enderun, so we have to persevere here in the National Invitationals. It is a big opportunity to participate here."
Kai Lleses and NCAA 101 Rookie of the Year Cam Bartolome will spearhead the Lady Blazers, who also have new faces. "We lost a lot of players from last year. We'll be trying out a lot of things and evaluating a lot of options now. So hopefully, we'll be able to compete. Hopefully, we'll put in a good performance," coach Jerry Yee said.
After leading UST High School to a breakthrough championship in the 2026 Shakey's Girls Volleyball Invitational League (SGVIL) Rising Stars Cup Division 1 and winning Most Valuable Player two months ago, Kim Rubin will try to bring the same impact this time with the Tigresses. Also seeing action for UST are seasoned stars Angge Poyos, Regina Jurado, Avril Bron, and Marga Altea.
"It is a great honor to participate in this. It is a huge help in gaining exposure against UAAP and NCAA teams, and it also offers an international flavor. And of course, we want to show that Enderun Colleges has a volleyball program," head coach Ariel Dela Cruz said.
The two guest teams expressed excitement in their campaign. "Our team will try our best and see how far we'll be able to go in the tournament. We just want to demonstrate our best," Ho Chi Minh Volleyball Club coach Huinn Do Hong Loan said. Southern Storm Melbourne head coach Carlo Pacioni added that his team looks forward to the challenge of playing against the style of Philippine volleyball. "We want to experience a different flavor of volleyball here in the Philippines. We expect the style to be different in what we play, and I think we are very eager for the challenge to keep up with it," he said.
The six teams play a single-round elimination with the top four advancing to the knockout semifinals. Eliminated teams will square off in the classification round. The championship and battle for bronze are also winner-take-all affairs.
