THE ATENEO Paddlers capped off a trying first round of the UAAP Table Tennis Tournament with the men’s and women’s team managing a 1-7 and 1-6 win-loss record, respectively. The competition took place last Sunday, September 23 at the Blue Eagle Gym.
Blue Paddlers
The men’s team found themselves pitted against the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Growling Tigers, defending champions, in their first assignment of the morning.
Karl Uy snatched the first win of the morning for Ateneo with an impressive display of talent against UST. Ateneo, however, dealt with consecutive losses in the singles and doubles event by UST.
With a standing of 1-2 in favor of UST, all eyes were on junior Mihali Crisostomo for redemption as he challenged UST’s Diaz. All seemed lost when Crisostomo “mislaid” two sets, but an unexpected turn of events brought the Growling Tiger down to his knees as the Blue Paddler tied the game at 2-all.
The final set proved to be a heart-stopper as the simultaneous exchange from both players brought the game into a deuce. Unfortunately, Diaz triumphed in the end, 12-14.
Coach Floyd Lobaton truly empathized with his players. “Okay lang iyon, basta ‘yung gusto ko, laban talaga (It’s okay, because that’s what I want, for them to truly fight.),” shared Lobaton.
Their second game against the University of the East (UE) brought yet another wave of remorse as UE swept the game, 0-3.
Their third and final game of the first round was against Adamson University. The Blue Paddlers swept the Blue Falcons with a 3-0 comeback.
Shaking off the painful loss against UST, Crisostomo led the Blue Paddlers as they swept the hapless Adamson Paddlers. The 3-0 sweep attained by Crisostomo was beautifully mimicked by singles player Uy and doubles players Erwin Gavino and Clarence Bondoc.
This victorious final game of the Blue Paddlers surely increased the team’s morale.
“It feels great”, Uy commented. “Pinapakita [ng panalo na ito] na kaya talaga namin (This win shows that we are more than capable.),” Uy truly believes that they still have a chance. “Kaya fight lang dapat (That’s why we must fight.).”
Lady Paddlers
Ateneo and Adamson clashed in the women’s team’s first game of the day. Like the men’s team, the Lady Paddlers outplayed Adamson, 3-0.
With immense dexterity, an injured Clarice Manuel swept Adamson’s Dingal with ease, 3-0. A powerful performance by Jane Dela Cruz followed the win with another sweep against Quiñosa.
The final blow was unleashed by beautiful team play by the doubles pair Lexine Uy and Mia Cariño, concluding the rallies indefinitely with a 3-1 victory.
“Sa wakas, nanalo rin (Finally, we won.),” expressed team captain Manuel.
The second assignment of the Lady Paddlers was archrival De La Salle University (DLSU), which proved to be a battle of willpower. Singles players Dela Cruz and Allysa Balanzat, and doubles team Uy and Cariño challenged the Archers in what ended as a wounding 0-3 knockout.
“Mali yung diskarte sa tao (Our gut feeling failed us in the line-up.),” said Coach Lobaton as the final match of Uy and Cariño came into a close.
End of round one
The single win against Adamson University turned the tide around for both teams.
Uy, Gavino and Manuel were still confident about their chances of advancing to the Final Four even if they’re currently standing near the bottom. “Ang kasabihan nga, ‘bilog ang bola’ (There is a saying, ‘the ball is round’), anything can happen,” remarked an optimistic Manuel.
Round 2 of the UAAP Table Tennis Tournament will commence next weekend, September 29 and 30 at the Blue Eagle Gym. Games will commence at 8:00 AM and will last until 4:00 PM.
