Tournament Format
The tournament begins with a double round eliminations, where a team meets its opponent twice in a season. The four top teams qualify for the postseason if and when a team doesn't sweep the eliminations.
The postseason is divided into the semi-Finals and the Finals. In the semi-Finals, the top four teams based on team standings (and tie-breakers, if applicable) from the elimination round qualify. The two top seeds have a twice to beat advantage, that is they must be beaten twice in order to be eliminated. The lower seeds, on the other hand, are eliminated when they are defeated once.
The surviving teams face off in a best-of-three Finals, where the team which notches two wins first wins the championship.
If a team wins all of the games in the elimination round, the step ladder format is used, where the unbeaten team has a bye up to the best-of-three Finals. The third and fourth seed will figure in a knockout game; the winner of that game will face the second seed which has a twice-to-beat advantage. The surviving team meets the first seed at the Finals.
The other format however is that if a team survives the elimination round unbeaten, they are declared as the automatic champions.
Read more about this topic: UAAP Volleyball Championship