MANILA, Philippines – After a series of disappointing seasons, the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Golden Tigresses are confident that they can finally snap their four-year Final Four drought in the UAAP Season 79 women's volleyball tournament.

Season 78 record: 5-9

Season 78 summary: It was another up-and-down season for the spikers from España in Season 78. They opened the tournament with three straight losses, but bounced back with victories over University of the East and National University.

The high point of UST's season was their final game of the first round, when they stunningly defeated eventual champions De La Salle University in straight sets. That gave them a 3-4 record at the end of the first round, and put them in the thick of the Final Four race.

However, they would win only two more matches the rest of the way. They ended the tournament on a four-game losing streaking, with a loss to University of the Philippines in their last game killing their semifinal hopes.

• READ: Tigresses send Lady Warriors to 53-game losing streak

Key losses: Carmela Tunay, Jessey de Leon

Key returnees: Pam Lastimosa, Cherry Rondina, EJ Laure

Projection: The UST Tigresses have many reasons to be confident ahead of UAAP Season 79. Firstly, they welcomed back Pam Lastimosa, whose ACL injury last year derailed their Season 78 campaign before it even started.

Lastimosa's skills are proven, as she is a reliable attacker and a solid defender both at the net and on the floor. If she is fully healthy, Lastimosa will be another potent weapon for UST.

More importantly, Lastimosa, a former team captain, provides UST with a leadership presence that they sorely missed last year.

Furthermore, third-year players EJ Laure and Cherry Rondina are back and they both appear to be better than ever. Laure and Rondina both saw action in the Philippine Superliga in the offseason, and playing in the semi-professional league clearly helped them improve their skills. Rondina is also coming off another championship in the beach volleyball tournament, and eager to experience a similar level of success in the indoor game.

They will still have former Best Blocker Ria Meneses, and promising liberos Rica Rivera and Pat Rasmo. The question for UST, as it is for several other teams in the UAAP, is the setter position. In Season 78, coach Kungfu Reyes alternated between veteran Alex Cabaños and the younger Alina Bicar.

If the UST setters can play to the level of their attackers, this might just be the year that the Tigresses barge back into the Final Four.

What they said: "We really want na makabalik sa Finals. Kung gusto niyo malaman ang goal namin talaga, 'yun po talaga. Siyempre, maganda rin po na makapasok sa Final Four, pero mas maganda pop ag Finals. Ta-trabhahuhin namin. Hindi po kami magi-iwan ng salita. Basta trabaho – trabaho lang talaga." – Cherry Rondina.

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