GOING HEAD to head with the University of Sto. Tomas (UST) on the second to the last day of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Lawn Tennis tournament, the Ateneo Blue and Lady Eagles were taken down by the host school, suffering losses on the clay on Saturday, March 11 at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Courts. Despite the less than ideal result, valiant spirit soared beyond the net as both teams battled stiff competition and physical injury in a spectacular fight to the finish.

The Lady Eagles

The women’s team opened the duel on the courts, setting the steady pace with a resilient mindset early in the day. The women’s first singles match pitted Khrizelle Sampaton against UST’s Precian Rivera in a heated face-off that ended in three sets. Having given away the first set to Rivera, Sampaton sparked a comeback, rising to the challenge to force a third set against her UST foe. Rivera, however, fought tooth and nail to scrape the victory and eventually managed to outplay Sampaton at 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 to draw first blood for UST.

The Lady Eagles’ rookie duo of Annika Mallari and Nicole Amistad suited up in the women’s first doubles match, playing Lennelyn Milo and Mary Ann San Jose from UST. Mallari and Amistad put on a tremendous display of chemistry, giving the UST tandem a few good scares on the clay, but were eventually beaten in two sets at 6-3, 6-4. Sophomore Rocio Climent stepped onto the courts for the Blue and White in the women’s second singles match but was unable to secure the win for the Lady Eagles, falling to Erika Manduriao at 6-1, 6-0 as UST took a third match and the win.

Jana Hernandez and Jessica Agra went head to head with Shymae Gitalan and Ingrid Gonzales in the women’s second doubles match, utilizing veteran teamwork to give the UST pair a tough clash on the clay. Hernandez and Agra earned a hard-fought first set, but a triumphant comeback from Gitalan and Gonzales proved to be unstoppable as UST took their fourth match at 5-7, 6-4, 6-3.
Jana Pages concluded the day’s events for the Lady Eagles, facing Immaville Gervacio in the women’s third singles match. Pages looked strong on the court, making easy work of Gervacio to give the Lady Eagles their lone win at 6-3, 6-2 to round out a 1-4 win-loss result.

The Blue Eagles

The men’s team sent in Marcen Gonzales to play the men’s first singles match, with the veteran defeating Dave Mosqueda of UST in two sets at 6-3, 6-4 to get the momentum swinging in the Blue Eagles favor. With the Blue Eagles gaining an early lead, Erj Gatdula and AJ Rivero teamed up for the men’s first doubles match but were unable to capitalize on the opportunity to tally another match. The Ateneo duo fell to UST’s pair of Joel Cabusas and Bernlo Bering, giving their opponents a tying match after losing a hard-fought second set at 6-1, 6-4.

Ino Canlas broke the deadlock in the second men’s singles match, putting Ateneo up two matches to one with an assertion of dominance on the tennis court. Battling UST’s Christian Lopez, Canlas held down the fort to take a convincing victory in two sets, giving Ateneo the advantage with a 6-4, 6-4 finish.

In need of one more win, the Blue Eagles set Julian Dayrit and Anton Punzalan to play the men’s second doubles match against the UST tandem of Clarence Cabahug and Warren Lagahit. Despite strong showings with a near win in the first set, Dayrit and Punzalan were eventually taken down by UST, with Cabahug and Lagahit nabbing a 6-4, 6-3 finish to lock the overall score at 2-2 and turn the third men’s singles into the deciding match.

With the hopes of the team resting on the final match of the day, the weight fell onto the shoulders of Blue Eagle Luke Flores who faced Francis Lanzado in the game winner. Backed up by a supportive crowd, Flores fired the first shots of war on the clay, managing to steal the first set and give Ateneo the advantage. Lanzado then turned the tables with a ferocious comeback to force a do-or-die third set that would determine the ultimate winner.

However, despite taking the first game in the third set of the match, Flores collapsed on the court with a bout of cramps, effectively rendering the veteran immobile. Wary of the squad’s chances on the next and final day of the competition, Flores retired from the final set and limped off the court amidst applause from the audience as Lanzado took the win at 6-3, 3-6, 4-1.

Positive results

Despite dropping a win on the standings, the Blue and Lady Eagles maintained characteristic spirit through victory and defeat heading into the final day of the tournament. The Lady Eagles stand at a 1-5 win-loss record before their final game against De La Salle University (DLSU) on Sunday, March 12. The Blue Eagles claim a 3-6 win-loss record as they enter their second-round finale against National University (NU).

Match scores (Ateneo-UST)

Women’s first singles match: 4-6, 6-4, 4-6
Women’s second singles match: 1-6, 0-6
Women’s third singles match: 6-3, 6-2
Women’s first doubles match: 3-6, 4-6
Women’s second doubles match: 7-5, 6-4, 6-3
Men’s first singles match: 6-3, 6-4
Men’s second singles match: 6-4, 6-4
Men’s third singles match: 6-3, 6-3, 4-1
Men’s first doubles match: 1-6, 4-6
Men’s second doubles match: 6-4, 6-3