THE ATENEO Blue Eagles were defeated by the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons in the semifinal round of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 80 Men’s Badminton Final Four tournament at a 1-3 scoreline on Friday, October 13 at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila.

The Blue Eagles’ loss sees UP book a finals round showdown against the three-time defending champions, the National University (NU) Bulldogs.

To get the team-tie rolling, Blue Eagle Keoni Asuncion competed in the first men’s singles against UP’s JM Bernardo. A strong start from Asuncion was not enough to see him through as he went down to lose in two sets, 14-21, 18-21.

Team captain Carlo Remo was then thrown into the mix by the Blue and White for the second singles match of the day, battling UP’s Vincent Manuel. A series of aggressive smashes from Remo saw the senior take both sets at 21-15, 21-19.

Graduating veterans Sean Chan and Clarence Filart then teamed up in the first doubles contest, clashing with the UP tandem of JM Bernardo and CK Clemente. Unfortunately, the Ateneo tandem found themselves quickly conceding the sets at 7-21, 11-21 for the Blue Eagles to fall behind in the team-tie, 1-2.

On the brink of defeat, Asuncion and Remo joined forces in the second men’s doubles matchup to take on the UP duo of Roberto Pineda and Paul Gonzales. Although both sets saw the teams in a tightly contested affair early on, UP eventually claimed the team-tie by taking both sets at 18-21.

The Blue Eagles conclude Season 80 of the UAAP Men’s Badminton tournament with a third place finish that saw the last hurrahs of team veterans Remo, Filart, Chan, and Patrick Gecosala.

Match Score

Ateneo 1 UP 3

Set Scores
First Men’s Singles (Asuncion vs. Bernardo): 14-21, 18-21
Second Men’s Singles (Remo vs. Manuel): 21-15, 21-19
First Men’s Doubles (Chan and Filart vs. Bernardo and Clemente): 7-21, 11-21
Second Men’s Doubles (Asuncion and Remo vs. Pineda and Gonzales): 18-21, 18-21