THE ATENEO Men’s Lawn Tennis Team opened the second round of their University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Men’s Lawn Tennis campaign in commanding fashion, 5-0, against the Adamson University (AdU) Soaring Falcons on Sunday, March 10, at the Colegio San Agustin-Bulacan Tennis Stadium in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan.
The day started out favorable for Ateneo as the first singles match saw Team Captain Marcen Gonzales score a perfect match, 6-0, 6-0, completely overwhelming AdU’s Samuel Nillasca.
In the first doubles match, the pairing of Julian Dayrit and Bong Gonzales suffered a first set loss against AdU’s Jefrey Burgos and Chad Galindo, 2-6. Despite their rocky start, the tandem redeemed themselves and rocketed through the remaining sets to secure an overpowering victory, 6-2, 6-0.
Ateneo’s onslaught continued as Iyo Canlas boasted a straight-set victory against Soaring Falcon Brandon Albito in the second singles match. The Blue Eagle took full control of the game and cruised through his AdU counterpart, scoring a smashing 6-1, 6-0 win for the Ateneo.
The duo of Luke Flores and Erj Gatdula maintained Ateneo’s winning momentum as they outshined AdU’s Ken Dela Cruz and Jezzi Chiong in the second doubles match. Flores and Gatdula exuded their usual chemistry and made quick work of their opponents, easily brushing off the Soaring Falcons in a stellar straight-set victory, 6-3, 6-3.
The last singles match up saw Blue Eagle Gab Tiamson take on AdU’s Jemar Sanchez. Tiamson dominated from start to finish, taking the match, 6-1, 6-0, to seal the tie in Ateneo’s favor, 5-0.
The Blue Eagles return to action on Sunday, March 10 at 8:00 AM against the UP Fighting Maroons at the same venue.
Team-tie score: Ateneo 5 AdU 0
Set scores:
First Singles: M. Gonzales (Ateneo) def. Nillasca, 6-0, 6-0
Second Singles: Canlas (Ateneo) def. Albito, 6-1, 6-0
Third Singles: Tiamson (Ateneo) def. Sanchez, 6-1, 6-0
First Doubles : Dayrit and B. Gonzales (Ateneo) def. Burgos and Galindo, 2-6, 6-2, 6-0
Second Doubles: Flores and Gatdula (Ateneo) def. Dela Cruz and Chiong, 6-3, 6-3
