In Season 74, the Ateneo Men’s Badminton Team was looking to end a seven-year title drought. Having finished third and second in the past two seasons, respectively, the Blue Eagles were packed with returning veterans like the country’s top seeded badminton player Toby Gadi, Paolo Sunga, Pawee Natividad, and Justin Natividad. Because of their veteran core, the team was considered a legitimate title contender. “I wouldn’t consider ourselves underdogs [that year],” shared Gadi.
However, the team underperformed and finished the elimination round as the fourth seed, facing a twice-to-beat disadvantage against first-seeded De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archers in the semi-finals.
Despite the unfavorable odds, the veterans delivered in game one, 3-1, to force a deciding game two. With renewed confidence from game one’s victory, the Blue Eagles steamrolled past their archrivals in game two, dropping only one set to secure the series sweep against DLSU.
As the Blue and White marched on to their second consecutive finals appearance, the Blue Eagles were clear underdogs against a strong National University (NU) squad that featured several national team players. However, Gadi and the team continued to keep a positive mindset, believing they could pull off an upset. “We had our chance last year [when the team finished as the first runner-up], ito na yung chance namin (here is our chance). Let’s grab this chance,” said Gadi.
“I wouldn’t consider ourselves underdogs. Even in my rookie year [Season 72], I knew we were title contenders.”
Season MVP Toby Gadi
The Blue Eagles had a good start in the finals as Pawee grabbed hold of his singles game to take the early lead for Ateneo, 1-0.
However, after taking set one in the second match up, Gadi dropped the second set in the hands of fellow national team skipper Joper Escueta, 19-21. With momentum on Escueta’s side, Gadi experienced a daunting setback as he suffered from cramps while being down, 10-11, in the third and deciding set. Despite the setback, Gadi managed to overcome his cramps and the deficit to finish off the set, 21-17, and secure a commanding 2-0 team-tie lead for Ateneo.
After dropping the third match, Pawee and Gadi paired up in the second doubles event to close out NU and prevent a deciding fifth match. Despite trailing for most of the first set, the pair came back to win the set, 21-18. In the second set, Pawee and Gadi came up clutch after trailing by five points late in the game. The tandem ended the match with a 6-2 run, including Gadi’s hit that secured the championship title for the Blue Eagles.
“The moment I saw him miss the shuttlecock, inisip ko (I thought), ‘Holy shit I won, we won, we actually won,” recalled Gadi.
With years of hard work finally culminating in another championship, the Ateneo Men’s Badminton Team left a lasting legacy for the University’s badminton program. Because of this, the Blue Eagles garnered more support for the badminton program and became more active in recruiting new players for the team.
“Hindi ako nirecruit ng Ateneo (I wasn’t recruited by Ateneo) even if I wanted to go to Ateneo. They weren’t really active in finding new kids and players. But after that season, ngayon (now) they are more active in recruiting and giving out scholarships to compete with other schools,” shared Gadi.
