AFTER SUFFERING losses to National University and Far Eastern University in their previous two outings, the Ateneo Blue Shuttlers entered the third weekend of the UAAP Badminton Championships on a losing streak.

This weekend however, the boys in blue left the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex Badminton Hall with a different type of streak; this time, it was the winning kind.

After having swept their Adamson counterparts a day earlier, the Blue Shuttlers did the same on August 21, shutting out their competitors from Diliman 5-0.

The Battle of Katipunan started off with Justin Natividad going up against UP’s Kelvin Panganiban. It was a tight game early on as both fought unrelentingly, trading points until Panganiban cruised to a 4-0 run to take an 11-7 lead into the break.

Panganiban maintained his lead and almost secured the game with a 19-15 advantage,  until Natividad turned the tables on him to record six straight points and win the game, 21-15.

Natividad rode the momentum to win his match by garnering a more comfortable 21-10 win in the second game. The win gave the Blue Shuttlers an early one nil advantage in their team tie.

Blue Shuttler Pawee Natividad followed his younger brother’s lead with a strong opening game against Christian Crisostomo. He led by as much as eight points before closing the game out, 21-13. The elder Natividad trailed early in the second game before taking the lead with a powerful smash to go up 3-2. Natividad never looked back and secured the match with a 21-17 win, extending the Blue and White’s lead to 2-0.

Toby Gadi and Justin Natividad looked to place the final nail in UP’s coffin in the first doubles match of the morning. The Ateneo pair came up short in the first game as they dropped a close one to a rejuvenated Panganiban and Charlo Tengco. The 19-21 loss would turn out to be the only game the Blue Shuttlers would concede in the day.

The Ateneo pair trailed early in the second game before rallying for an 11-10 half game advantage. It was a close game that featured several lead changes, but Gadi seized the lead for Ateneo with a monster smash to put the Blue Shuttlers up 17-16. The Ateneans went on to tie the match at 1-1 with a 21-17 victory.

The sudden death game saw Gadi and Natividad establish a 9-4 lead early on. The lead would prove to be enough, as they went on to seal the deal for the Blue Shuttlers with a 21-14 score line. With the win, Gadi and Natividad secured the win for Ateneo.

Despite already having their fourth win of the season in the bag, Paolo Sunga and Pawee Natividad kept their feet on the gas pedal as they racked up the most convincing victory of the morning. With a 21-9, 21-13 drubbing of their UP’s Jeffery Foronda and Mervin Santiago, Ateneo was one match win away from sweeping their second assignment in as many days.

Philippine Number One Gadi was all business in the final singles match of the day. After destroying Charlo Tengco in the first game with a 21-5 demolition job, The Blue Shuttler faced stiffer competition in the succeeding game. Tengco kept the score respectable in the second game but just didn’t have the answer for Gadi’s power play as the Ateneo team captain smashed in point after point to win the match, 21-16.

Asked what the difference was this weekend after falling twice early in the season, Pawee Natividad said, “Nothing to lose naman kasi and after last week, mas na-gauge namin na kaya naman pala so nainspire kami lalo.”

The Blue Shuttlers hope that that same inspiration will be there next Sunday, August 28, as they try to strengthen their positioning in the upper echelon of the standings. In their final team tie of the round robin stages, Ateneo will face the University of Santo Tomas at 9:00am, once again at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex Badminton Hall.

Team Standings: