IT TOOK the blue shuttlers only four matches to defeat their archrivals De La Salle University (DLSU) in the do-or-die team-tie in Season 81 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) on Sunday, October 7, in the Rizal Memorial Stadium Badminton Hall.
Carlo Remo won the first match, a three-setter, for the blue shuttlers at the expense of Cayel Pajarillo. Remo got off to a good start as he jumped to an early 7-4 lead in the first set. However, he was unable to sustain his play and fell in the first set, 18-21. It was a different story in the last two sets, however, as Remo flew around the court with aggressiveness and panache. He went on to win both of the following sets, 21-12, 21-16, and the match.
Keoni Asuncion picked up right where Remo left off, swiftly downing DLSU’s Andrew Pineda in two sets, 21-12, 21-8. Asuncion piled up the points on Pineda, running out to big leads early on in both sets and keeping the errors minimal.
Sean Chan and Fides Bagasbas had a chance to take the deciding victory in the first doubles match of the day, but blew their chance against DLSU tandem Bless Linaban and Pajarillo. Chan and Bagasbas fought to keep it close in the first set but couldn’t trim down DLSU’s lead, leading to a 19-21 loss. Linaban and Pajarillo went on to prevent a comeback and closed out the match, 16-21, to secure DLSU’s first win of the day.
Remo and Asuncion returned to the court to finish the job for the blue shuttlers, with a commanding performance to overpower the doubles duo of Paolo Malabanan and Andrew Pineda. The match was never in doubt for Asuncion and Remo, who minimized errors to command a 21-12 first-set win. Despite a tough showing from Malabanan and Pineda, Remo and Asuncion answered with a clutch performance of their own, keeping their opponents at arm’s length with forced errors and expert kills. The Ateneo tandem stood tall and delivered a second-set win, 21-17, to seal the deal and walk away with a well-deserved 3-1 team-tie win.
The win keeps the blue shuttlers alive in the tournament, and sets a date with last year’s finalists, the University of the Philippines (UP), for a semifinals showdown. UP holds a twice-to-beat advantage over the blue shuttlers. Game 1 will be on Monday, October, 8, 2018, 8:00 AM at the Rizal Memorial Stadium Badminton Hall.
Team-tie score: Ateneo 3, DLSU 1
Set scores:
First singles: Carlo Remo def. Cayel Pajarillo, 18-21, 21-12, 21-16
Second singles: Keoni Asuncion def. Andrew Pineda, 21-12, 21-8
First doubles: Bless Linaban & Cayel Pajarillo def. Fides Bagasbas & Sean Chan, 19-21, 16-21
Second doubles: Keoni Asuncion & Carlo Remo def. Paolo Malabanan & Andrew Pineda, 21-12, 21-17
