THE ATENEO Men’s Lawn Tennis Team dropped its second tie against the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Growling Tigers, 2-3, in Day 2 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 81 Men’s Lawn Tennis Tournament, on Saturday, February 23 at the Colegio San Agustin-Bulacan Tennis Stadium in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan.
In the first singles match, Iyo Canlas went up against UST’s Francis Lanzado and cruised through the match, defeating Lanzado in straight sets, 6-3, 6-3.
Team Captain Marcen Gonzales then faced Growling Tiger Dave Mosqueda. Gonzales started the match on the right foot, taking the first set, 6-4, before Mosqueda went on a run of his own to secure the second set, 6-4. Gonzales failed to regain his momentum and lost the third set, 3-6. At this point, the team tie score stood at one match apiece.
For the third singles match, rookie Gab Tiamson made quick work of his UST counterpart Jaffary Cariga in two sets, 6-3, 6-2.
Veteran duo Bong Gonzales and Erj Gatdula battled through a rigorous game of highs and lows in the men’s first doubles match against UST’s Bernlu Bering and Ken Paradela. The Ateneo pair put up a strong showing in the first set, 6-4, before suffering a 1-6 second set loss. In the decider, Gonzales and Gatdula were unable to take full control of the match, losing a tightly contested third set, 6-7.
Julian Dayrit and Luke Flores encountered a heated face-off against Clarence Cabahug and Christian Lopez in the second doubles match, where the Growling Tigers managed to level Ateneo’s 6-3 first set win with a 3-6 second set triumph. In a similar fate, the UST tandem was able to outlast the Blue and White in yet another tough tiebreaker, 3-6, handing UST’s second doubles win of the day.
The results after Day 2 put the Blue Eagles at 1-1 in the elimination round standings of the tournament. Their next game will be against National University, at 8:00 AM, on Sunday, February 24, at the same venue.
Team-tie score: Ateneo 2 UST 3
Set scores:
First Singles: Canlas def. Lanzado, 6-3, 6-3
Second Singles: Mosqueda def. Gonzales, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3
Third Singles: Tiamson def. Cariga, 6-3, 6-2
First Doubles: Bering and Paradela def. Gonzales and Gatdula, 4-6, 6-1, 7-6
Second Doubles: Cabahug and Lopez def. Dayrit and Flores, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3
