Unfazed by the opponents’ twice-to-beat advantage, the Lady Shuttlers once again surpassed expectations by defeating the Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws, 3-2.
The win gives the Lady Shuttlers a clean slate against the ladies from Morayta, and puts them one win away from a place in this year’s finals.
The Ateneo win would not have been possible without the hustle and finesse play of rookies Gelita Castilo and Dia Magno—with all three wins coming from the rookie duo. For the first time this season, the top female doubles pair in the nation played alongside each other, which guaranteed a win in the first doubles bout.
Castilo, in almost routine fashion, won the first singles match against Katherine Mayono, 21-12, 19-21, 21-10, extending her undefeated streak in the singles category. However, unlike their previous meeting, which concluded in a straight two game victory (21-15, 21-15) in favor of Castilo, Mayono was determined to score an upset.
In the second game, Mayono took advantage of Castilo’s numerous unforced errors, and even showed some offensive might, challenging the Lady Shuttler with her drives. Yet, it proved to be a mere temporary lapse for the Atenean, as Castilo reasserted her control in the third game, winning handily, 21-10.
The Lady Tamaraws, however, quickly tied the score line at 1-1, as Jennifer Cayetano bested Lisa Encarnacion, 21-17, 21-13. Despite Cayetano’s difficulties with defending the Lady Shuttler’s drives, Encarnacion’s play was marred with errors and difficulties in finishing rallies, giving Cayetano the advantage and eventually the win.
The first doubles match of the day featured the UAAP debut of the number-one ranked female doubles pair in the country, Castilo and Magno, against Clarissa Pascual and Gretchen Culaste. The FEU duo were outclassed in a 21-12, 21-11 performance by the Lady Shuttlers. It was obvious that Castilo and Magno held back on the offensive aggressiveness, opting to exhaust the opposition with their relentless defensive parries. Even so, the ladies in blue came through with a comfortable win.
Nevertheless, FEU did not give the Lady Shuttlers time to enjoy the 2-1 lead, as the pair of Mayono and Cayetano defeated Carla Lizardo and Mikee Roxas 21-19, 21-16. It just happened to be one of those days for the veterans of the Lady Shuttlers squad, as Lizardo and Roxas were also plagued by numerous errors—service errors included. Although the Ateneo pair outlasted Mayono and Cayetano during the longer rallies, the errors piled up and proved to be too much at the end.
Magno was tasked with the high-pressured assignment of forcing the Lady Tamaraws into a second tie in the twice-to-beat series in the third singles bout of the afternoon against Pascual. However, all doubts were erased, as it was obvious that the slower Pascual would be unable to cope with Magno. The Lady Tamaraw’s difficulties defending Magno’s drop shots proved to be the game changer, as the latter cruised to a comfortable 21-13, 21-10 win.
The Lady Shuttlers will need a win in the second leg of the twice-to-beat series in order to advance to the final. They play the FEU Tamaraws again tomorrow, September 11, 1:00 PM at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex Badminton Hall.
