THE ATENEO Lady Shuttlers’ search for the coveted first win of the season continues as the ladies in Blue suffered a pair of losses on the weekend of August 28 and 29, at the Rizal Memorial Badminton Hall. The first and unfortunate defeat was to tournament host, the Adamson Lady Falcons. The second was a bruising at the hands of the undefeated UE Lady Warriors.
Ateneo vs. Adamson
The Lady Shuttlers kicked off their weekend against the Lady Falcons, also looking to gain their first win. Without the services of all-around player Mikee Roxas and captain Carla Lizardo, Ateneo struggled. Roxas suffered a season ending injury against the UP, whilst Lizardo had prior commitments as a contestant in the Mutya Ng Pilipinas pageant. Despite losing the services of two solid shuttlers, the Lady Blue eagles were just as determined.
The determination was apparent when Lisa Encarnacion drew first blood, winning against Lady Falcon Lovely Sawda in straight sets (21-10, 21-15). Encarnacion dictated the pace of the game; the slower, flat-footed Sawda attempted to return Encarnacion’s clears but consistently failed to do so.
The Lady Falcons fought back as Angelica Pardo defeated Audrey Ng (21-15, 17-21, 21-18), tying it at 1-1. Ng was offensively capable of beating Pardo but she was plagued with errors.
Lady Shuttlers Chelsa Say and Chikka Kumar were then pitted against Verna Belason and Janina Chavez. A newly fielded pair, and being Say’s first match of the season, the Ateneo side could not find steady ground throughout the match. The better-organized Adamson pair eventually got the better of Say and Kumar, taking the match (21-12, 18-21, 21-11) and giving Adamson the 2-1 lead.
“We lost momentum in the third set, and our game slowed down”, Say said.
The second doubles match saw the first and second singles players pair up, as Ng and Encarnacion teamed up against Sawarda and Pardo. It was up to the Ateneo pair to prevent an Adamson win, and to bring the score to 2-2. Despite Ng’s echoing smashes and Encarnacion’s accurate placing, the ladies in blue again succumbed to errors. The Falcons had the upper hand and won the match in two sets (21-25, 21-16), extending the lead 3-1.
However, this did not stop rookie Jaimee Calacday’s momentum, as she faced Belason. Calacday dropped the first set (11-21), but prevailed in the next two sets (21-13, 22-20). Although Calacday’s win had no effect on the standings, the ladies in blue were elated as Calacday grabbed her first UAAP win.
Ateneo vs UE
The next day the Lady Shuttlers faced the more experienced Lady Warriors, sporting an impeccable 4-0 record in the standings. The ladies were fortunate enough to regain the services of Lizardo, but it was not enough as the Lady Shuttlers lost to the Lady Warriors (4-1).
Ng bowed down to, national team stalwart Fatima Cruz (21-13, 21-15). Although Ng showed flashes of brilliance in the frontcourt, Cruz’s impeccable placing and experience won her the game.
Encarnacion then faced former Junior WNCAA MVP Rochelle Andres. Encarnacion was unable to answer Andres’ deceiving style of play, losing (21-15, 21-10).
The Lady Warriors capped of their win as, the towering pair of May Pamorada and Cruz outplayed the new pairing of Paula Filart and Say. It was a battle between David and Goliath. The less experienced ladies in Blue struggled to defend the combination of May’s precision net play and Cruz’s commanding smashes, as the UE pair won (21-5, 21-12).
Continuing their winning streak, UE’s Karla Formecosa and Jesa Sampura defeated Ng and Encarnacion (21-13, 19-21, 21-18). Despite being down one set to the Lady Warriors, the Lady Shuttlers relentlessly fought and took the second set. However, in the third set, the Lady Warriors barely pulled away, winning (21-18).
The only win of the day came from a fatigued Lizardo, ousting Kimberly Gatpolintan (21-18, 21-14), giving the Lady Shuttlers one win.
The Lady Shuttlers’ continue their campaign for win number one against NU, August 30 (Saturday), 1pm at the Rizal Sports Complex Badminton Hall.
Authors Note: In true winning fashion, Ateneo’s smashing beauty queen (pun intended) Carla Lizardo not only gained the Lady Shuttlers’ sole win against UE, but was also crowned Mutya ng Pilipinas-Miss Intercontinental.
Standings
- DLSU (4-0)
- UE (4-0)
- FEU (3-1)
- UST (2-2)
- UP (2-2)
- AdU (1-3)
- NU (0-4)
- Ateneo (0-4)
