Last four battle for Kenya Cup final slots

KCB players in action during their Kenya Volleyball Federation National League finals against Kenya Prisons at Kasarani Gymnasium. [Stafford Ondego, Standard]

A showdown is looming at the Kasarani Indoor Arena as the country's top clubs battle for final spots as the inaugural Kenya Volleyball Federation (KVF) Kenya Cup Tournament enters the penultimate stage today.

The last four men and women's teams will have everything to fight for as curtains fall on the KVF 2024-2025 season.

While newly crowned National League champions the General Service Unit (GSU) and Kenya Pipeline will be hoping to win a second trophy, Kenya Prisons sides will be seeking redemption, having failed to secure a podium finish.

There will be no love lost when GSU lock horns with former league holders Kenya Prisons in the men's semi-final.

The paramilitary side, which recaptured the title that it had lost to the warders in 2023, will be out to secure a place in the final and enhance their chances of adding another major trophy in their cabinet.

Prisons had a tough season, not only losing their league title to GSU but also finishing a distant fourth, hence missing a medal. The warders missed the services of their key players Dennis Esokon and Elphas Makuto. They face an uphill task against GSU, who are determined to end the season on a high. Esokon was instrumental in Prisons straight-set win against Equity Bank in the quarter-finals.

Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) and Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) will face off in the other men's last four encounter.

KPA, who settled for silver after losing to GSU in the men's league final, will be out to make the best out of the match and remain in the race for the title.

KDF are also eyeing the final slot, having finished fifth in the league. The soldiers are seeking a strong finish to the season after their shock 2-1 best-of-three defeat to Equity Bank that crashed their league title ambitions.

In the women's title hunt, league champions Kenya Pipeline will square it out with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) in a repeat of the women's league final.

The oilers will be out to extend their good run against the sleuths who had a very good season. They will be wary of the detectives who will be on a revenge mission.

Dethroned league champions KCB Bank will clash with Kenya Prisons for a place in the final.

The bankers beat the wardresses in the league third-place play-off match to take bronze. It will be a high-stakes match because winning today's match will be a consolation for both sides, but more for Prisons, who would have sealed a silver medal with a possibility of lifting the trophy. The wardresses finished fourth and failed to win a medal for the first time in many years.