THE ATENEO Blue and Lady Eagles competed in the last matches of their respective Season 79 campaigns in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Lawn Tennis Tournament on Sunday, March 12 at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Courts, Manila.

The Lady Eagles secure fourth place against DLSU

Rocio Climent took to the court to play Rachelle de Guzman in the first singles event of the team-tie matchup against De La Salle University (DLSU), with the Lady Archer outplaying her Ateneo counterpart in both sets. The match finished 6-1, 6-0, giving DLSU the advantage in the team-tie.

Team Captain Jana Hernandez and Jess Agra played simultaneously on court 5 against the DLSU pair, Jed Aquino and Princess Castillo. The first set saw the Blue and White outmaneuver their opponents, as they clinched the set 7-6 after a tense tiebreak. The Lady Archers raced to a two game advantage in the second set but Hernandez and Agra managed to close the set 6-3 to pull Ateneo level in terms of the team-tie score.

Nicole Amistad and Annika Mallari were next to don the Blue and White in the second doubles of the day as they looked to give Ateneo the advantage in the team-tie and secure their final four spot. They faced Orillosa and Gacias of DLSU but managed to breeze past the Lady Archers only conceding one game in two sets, 6-0, 6-1.

Khrizelle Sampaton settled the team-tie with her three-set nail-biter win against Chang Atangan, producing a stunning comeback to force a third set, clinching the win in the third set tiebreak. The match finished with set scores of 5-7, 6-2, 7-6.

Despite the team-tie win, Jana Pages played the third and final singles of the day against DLSU’s Jenni Dizon. Dominant baseline play from last season’s rookie of the year proved to be more than enough for Pages to take a 6-0, 6-3 win against the Lady Archer.

This win puts the Lady Eagles at a 2-6 win-loss record in the elimination round standings of the tourney.

Blue Eagles dent NU’s hopes to make the finals

Meanwhile, the Blue Eagles faced the defending champions National University (NU) in the last match of the second round during the windy hours of the afternoon.

AJ Rivero was comfortably disposed by Macky Latorre in the first singles match, 6-1, 6-4 while doubles pair Julian Dayrit and Anton Punzalan lost out against Jigo Pena and Justine Prulla. Despite keeping pace with the NU duo, a crucial break of serve awarded NU the first set, 6-4, and subsequently, the match (6-4, 6-3).

In the second singles match, Marcen Gonzales was steady from the baseline as he recorded a commanding 6-4, 6-0 win. Luke Flores and Erj Gatdula did well to force extra shots from their opponents which led to unforced errors on the part of Kiko Alcantara and Allen Manlangit. The Blue Eagle duo comfortably took the match, 6-3, 6-1 to tie the matchup at 2 wins all.

In the deciding match, Team Captain Ino Canlas was in cruise control for the better part of his battle with Arc Dolorito. After taking a 6-2 win in the first set, Canlas had an opportunity to seal the deal at 5-2 in the second set. Dolorito persisted, however, and broke back to extend the set. Canlas secured the match during his next service game to grab the deciding win of the tie, 6-2, 6-4, summing up the grit exemplified by the Blue Eagles in the tourney.

In their Season 79 campaign where they stand at a 4-6 win-loss record, the Blue Eagles frequently found themselves on either sides of 3-2 team-tie scorelines. Coach PJ Tierro, however, took this as a good sign, “Basically we have a chance to win everything pero talo lang eh (We have a chance to win everything but sometimes it’s a loss),” he shrugged.

Nevertheless, this win also marks a first triumph against NU in six years according to Coach Tierro. With no players leaving the team this year, Coach Tierro believes this win can propel the Blue and White to do even better next time around.

Blue Eagles (Ateneo- NU)

1st Singles: 1-6, 4-6

2nd Singles: 6-4, 6-0

3rd Singles: 6-2, 6-4

1st Doubles: 4-6, 3-6

2nd Doubles: 6-3, 6-1

Lady Eagles (Ateneo- DLSU)

1st Singles: 1-6, 0-6

2nd Singles: 5-7, 6-2, 7-6

3rd Singles: 6-0, 6-3

1st Doubles: 7-6, 6-3

2nd Doubles: 6-0, 6-1

The Blue Eagles defeat the defendingChampions while the Lady Eagles secure fourth place.

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