THE ATENEO Women’s Table Tennis Team kicked off the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 82 Table Tennis Tournament splitting the win-loss column in their first two matches. The Lady Eagles began with a commanding win against the Adamson University (AdU) Lady Falcons, 3-0, but fell to the De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Archers, 2-3. Both games were held on Saturday, November 9, at the Ateneo De Manila University Blue Eagle Gym in Quezon City.
In the first team-tie, Lady Eagle Ana Calvo secured a win over AdU’s Romaguera in five sets, 12-10, 10-12, 11-9, 5-11, 11-5. Rookie Ann Borbon suited up next, debuting in the Seniors’ division after playing for the Blue and White in the Juniors division. Borbon bested AdU’s Soriano in four sets, 12-10, 8-11, 11-8, 11-6
Sophomores Kath Bulaqueña and Nadine Uy stood up well against Lady Falcons Baltazar and De Guzman, outlasting the AdU duo in five sets. The Lady Eagles won the first set, 11-8, but Baltazar and De Guzman regrouped and managed to take sets two and three, 9-11 and 10-12, respectively. Ateneo’s patience earned them the fourth set, 11-7, and capped off the team-tie with another 11-7 scoreline in the final set.
Facing last season’s first runner-up DLSU proved to be too much for the Lady Eagles to handle. Ateneo fielded a different line-up, handing rookie Kaela Aguilar her UAAP debut. Aguilar put up a dominant performance against DLSU’s Canoos, winning in straight sets, 11-3, 11-7, 11-8.
Borbon stepped up against DLSU’s Teodoro in the second match. The Lady Archer stole the first set, 13-11, but Borbon refused to back down and earned a commanding 11-4 win. Teodoro and Borbon split the third and fourth sets, setting up a deciding fifth which Teodoro came away with, 11-6.
Bulaqueña and Uy suited up once again for the doubles match-up against DLSU’s Sorongon and Tan. The Lady Eagle duo notched a first set win, 11-8, but their errors in the second set granted Sorongon and Tan an 11-5 victory to even the team-tie. Bulaqueña and Uy recovered the third set to win at 11-7. However, their efforts fell short as the Lady Archer duo took the fourth and fifth sets, 5-11 and 9-11.
Calvo took on DLSU’s Bernaldez in the third singles match-up. The Lady Eagle not only overcame her Lady Archer counterpart in straight sets, 11-6, 11-2, 11-6, but also tied the team-tie score at 2-2 to place the overall outcome on the fifth match.
Geque Carado saw action for the first time as she faced DLSU’s Go in the team-tie decider. Carado slipped to a more composed Go in straight sets, 9-11, 7-11, 4-11.
The Lady Eagles have a chance to build on some encouraging performances in their upcoming games. The second day of the tournament will see them go up against National University at 8:00 AM and the University of Santo Tomas at 1:00 PM on Sunday, November 10, at the Ateneo De Manila University Blue Eagle Gym in Quezon City.
Set scores: (Atene0-AdU): Ateneo – 3, AdU – 0
First Women’s Singles (Calvo vs. Romaguera): 12-10, 10-12, 11-9, 5-11, 11-5
Second Women’s Singles (Borbon vs. Soriano): 12-10, 8-11, 11-8, 11-6
First Women’s Doubles: (Bulaqueña and Uy vs. Baltazar and De Guzman): 11-13, 9-11, 10-12, 11-7, 11-7
Set Scores (Ateneo-DLSU): Ateneo – 2, DLSU – 3
First Women’s Singles (Aguilar vs. Canoos): 11-3, 11-7, 11-8
Second Women’s Singles (Borbon vs. Teodoro): 11-13, 11-4, 7-11, 11-6, 6-11
First Women’s Doubles (Bulaqueña and Uy vs. Sorongon and Tan): 11-8, 5-11, 7-11, 5-11, 9-11
Third Women’s Singles (Calvo vs. Bernaldez): 11-6, 11-2, 11-6
Fourth Women’s Singles: (Carado vs. Go): 9-11, 7-11, 4-11
