FANS can expect nothing but thrilling battles when the country’s leading collegiate and university teams vie in the inaugural staging of the Shakey’s Super League 2022 Collegiate Pre-season Championship starting on Sept. 24 at the historic Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
This will be the first time a tournament will feature all eight teams from the UAAP and 10 from the NCAA.
“We’re very excited about this conference as we will be able to watch the best college and university teams compete before the start of their respective collegiate seasons,” said Dr. Ian Laurel, president of SSL organizer Athletic Events and Sports Management, Inc.
All eyes will be on UAAP champion National University and NCAA titlist College of St. Benilde, with both squads out to stretch their unbeaten championship runs in their respective leagues.
The 18 teams are divided into four groups, with Pool A composed of University of the Philippines, University of the East, Mapua, San Beda University and University of Perpetual Help.
Adamson University, University of Santo Tomas, San Sebastian College, Emilio Aguinaldo College and Lyceum of the Philippines University are in Pool B while NU, Ateneo de Manila University, Jose Rizal University and Arellano University are in Pool C.
CSB is joined by De La Salle University, Far Eastern University and Letran in Pool D.
Using an all-to-play format, all players listed in a team’s roster will be fielded.
“This tournament format will benefit the teams as they work on improving their level of play and chance for coaches to use different combinations of players. This will also serve as a huge opportunity for new recruits and those off the bench to showcase their skills,” Laurel said.
The top two teams of each pool will advance to the next round where they will be grouped into two pools for another round-robin play to determine their ranking in the knockout quarterfinals. Both the semifinal and final are also knockout matches.
The challenge system will be implemented after the preliminary round.
