THE ATENEO Women’s Football Team (AWFT) were outclassed by University of Santo Tomas (UST), 1-6, in their third match of the second round in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Women’s Football tournament on Wednesday, March 14 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila.
This defeat against UST leaves Ateneo with a 1-2-4 win-draw-loss record in the competition, placing the Lady Eagles at fourth place with five points.
The Lady Eagles started out brightly, crafting the better chances early on. Ateneo forward Martie Bautista constantly found space on the left wing and sent in a number of crosses to threaten UST’s third of the pitch in the first quarter of the match. Nearly drawing first blood, the Lady Eagles found the back of the net early on, but the referee’s call disallowed the goal to stop the scare and keep the score level.
The Lady Tigresses changed the tide and fired the opening goal against the run of play, with UAAP top goalscorer Bhebe Lemoran following up for a rebound after a brilliant save from Mariane Caparros. Mary Joy Indac added a quick-fire second for UST before halftime after running straight through the Ateneo defensive line.
In need of some pace up front with his squad down 0-2, Head Coach Jaypee Merida decided to make crucial changes to his lineup before the second half, fielding Caparros as a winger and pulling off defender Mischa Soriano for Moira Lim.
The league leaders continued to pile the pressure on the Lady Eagles, nabbing a third goal through Shelah Cadag just three minutes after the restart. Ateneo wingback Pia Villaflor pulled one back for the Blue and Whites as she connected with a dangerous ball delivered in by defender Cathy Cabrera, but three more UST goals in four minutes from a dangerous frontline killed off any chance for a comeback.
The Lady Eagles will face the University of the Philippines (UP) in their final fixture of the campaign on March 17 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila.
Ateneo Starting XI: Caparros (GK), Soriano, Cabrera, Calimbo, Villaflor, Catedrilla, Diaz, Amoncio (C), Ferrer, Bautista, Bugayong
Substitutions
46‘ – Lim on for Soriano
66‘ – Javier on for Villaflor
80’ – Liwanag on for Ferrer
84’ – Andaya on for Diaz
