IN A highly-anticipated third chapter of the Battle of Katipunan Finals, the Ateneo Women’s Badminton Team (AWBT) failed to defend the crown against the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons, surrendering their seven-year-long reign, 1-3.

The University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87 Women’s Badminton Finals match was held earlier today at the Rizal Memorial Badminton Hall in the City of Manila.

Despite the loss, the Blue Eagles bagged the silver trophy after finishing second overall. Moreover, Althea Ocampo was named as the season’s Rookie of the Year during the awarding ceremony.

Launching the day’s clash of prowess and grit, Team Captain Mika De Guzman squared off against UP’s Susmita Ramos in the first singles bout. De Guzman surged ahead to an early 10-4 lead, with her precise shots keeping UP on the defensive. However, the Fighting Maroon quickly adapted, closing the gap to a 15-15 tie. From thereon, a thrilling back-and-forth unfolded, with the Blue Eagle’s cross-court drives colliding with Ramos’ tenacious returns, until a few late slip-ups allowed UP to edge out the set, 21-18.

Undeterred by the opening set loss, De Guzman stormed back into the second set with fresh intensity, quickly building a 5-0 lead as her relentless accuracy forced UP into repeated errors. Extending her lead to a commanding 17-4, the Season 86 Most Valuable Player (MVP) maintained full control, closing the set at 21-9 to push the match into a decisive third frame.

In the gripping final set, the Atenean skipper pulled ahead only for uncharacteristic miscues to let UP close in. As the score deadlocked at 21-21, however, De Guzman’s MVP caliber came through, with her blistering final shots clinching the set, 23-21.

In the second singles bout, Ateneo’s Maxene Olango took on UP’s Anthea Gonzales, but the match quickly turned into an uphill battle. From the first serve, Olango struggled to find her footing as errors piled up, giving Gonzales an open runway to surge ahead to a daunting 1-14 lead. A brief rally from the Atenean showed a glimmer of resilience, but the gap proved insurmountable, with Gonzales decisively closing the set at 5-21.

The second set offered a fresh start for Ateneo, yet the momentum stayed with the Fighting Maroon as the Olango once again wrestled with well-timed attacks. The Blue Eagle managed to cut the deficit to a tight 5-6. However, Gonzales seized control once more, extending her lead and fending off any attempts by Olango to close the gap. With each steady return, Gonzales sealed the set, 7-21, leaving Olango and the Blue Eagles looking to regroup.

Still eyeing to capture their second team-tie point, De Guzman and Ocampo challenged Susmita Ramos and Dianne Libaton in the first doubles face-off.

Although the first set began as a close 5-5 exchange, the Blue Eagles eventually struggled to match the Fighting Maroons’ relentless aggression, finding themselves at a 6-11 hole. While smashes from the Ateneo pair gradually stuck back the deficit, 8-16, UP decisively clinched the set, 21-14, following a series of faults from the Blue and White.

The Fighting Maroons carried over their aggressive net play to the second frame, swiftly holding a 9-6 advantage. Despite the three-point disadvantage, Ocampo’s consistent deflections dragged the frame to a back-and-forth affair to tie the game at 17-17. Unfortunately, the pressure soon overwhelmed the reigning MVP, as she committed two costly errors, resulting in a narrow 19-21 Ateneo loss.

With one match away from a Finals defeat, Feeby Ferrer and Olango readied their rackets, hoping to take down UP’s Gonzales and Kimberly Lao to at least ensure a fifth and final game.

The Blue Eagle duo immediately soared to a 7-4 strong offensive start, courtesy of shrewd net kills from Ferrer. Responding to the four-point deficit, Lao unleashed sharp shots to level the score at 9-9, triggering a fierce see-saw battle between the two teams.

UP eventually scored off two powerful drives to clinch setpoint, 20-18. Despite Ferrer’s strong defensive clears, the Fighting Maroons staggered the Blue Eagles with their speed, forcing a blunder to steal the set at 21-19.

With their five-peat on the line, the Blue Eagles summoned their best defensive efforts to keep the set at bay, 10-11. Regardless, Ateneo’s defensive backcourt play eventually broke down against Lao’s scorching smashes, resulting in a 16-12 disadvantage for the Blue and White.

Trailing by four in a drastically critical frame, the Blue Eagles blazed to a 4-1 run to almost tie the set at 16-17. However, Ateneo’s hopes were quickly dashed after the Fighting Maroons bagged three crucial smashes to clinch the championship point, 20-19. Although Ateneo exhibited their greatest defensive maneuvers, the end of their seven-year-long reign soon arrived, with UP’s Gonzales burying the game-winning smash to take the crown for Diliman, 21-19.

With the Season 87 Badminton tournament coming to a close, the AWBT will return to court in next year’s calendar—this time as the challengers looking to restore their historic dynasty.

Team-tie Score:

Ateneo-UP: 3-1

Results:

First Singles: De Guzman (Ateneo) def. Ramos, 18-21, 21-9, 23-21

Second Singles: Ocampo (UP) def. Olango (Ateneo) 5-21, 7-21

First Doubles: Ramos & Libaton (UP) def. De Guzman & Ocampo (Ateneo) 21-13, 21-19

Second Doubles: Lao & Gonzales (UP) def. Olango & Ferrer (Ateneo), 21-19, 21-19