THE ATENEO Blue Eagles demonstrated another impressive performance in Day 2 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 85 Women’s Table Tennis Tournament at the Makati Coliseum. Despite falling short in their match versus archrivals De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Paddlers, Ateneo secured important wins against the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Lady Paddlers and the University of the East (UE) Lady Warriors. The results of yesterday’s matches placed them at a 4-2 win-loss record early into the season. 

Rookie Sophia Fabregar opened Ateneo’s second round of games with a good win against the defending champions UST Lady Paddlers. Although Fabregar lost the third set to counterpart Angelou Laude, a final misreceive from UST allowed Ateneo to tally the first team-tie point. However, Ateneo’s Ana Gella Borbon was then defeated by UST’s Kate Encarnacion despite a grand showcase of efforts during the second singles match.  

The senior duo of Kathleen Bulaqueña and Ana Calvo then took the stage to engage in a back-and-forth match with their opponents, Leigh Villanueva and Emery Digamon. Thanks to their remarkable ending shots, the Ateneo duo bested the España-based pair and brought Ateneo further up the ranks. A trade of sets then followed suit in the third singles match between Blue Eagle Kaela Aguilar and Lady Paddler Sherlyn Gabisay. After pulling off impressive strokes and drives in a crucial fifth set, Aguilar cleared the path for a 3-1 Ateneo win over UST. 

[Third Singles]
A long rally ends in favor of Ateneo’s Aguilar, 11-9.

Match Score: Ateneo 3 UST 2
Team Tie Score: Ateneo 3 UST 1#UAAPTableTennis pic.twitter.com/oGLUbImqls

— Tristan A. Abuel (@Istan_TheGUIDON) November 21, 2022

Fabregar opened the next match against the DLSU Lady Paddlers in a bind. After numerous playing errors and unsteady shots, the Blue Eagle conceded with a straight-set loss. With Borbon looking forward to putting an end to the Lady Paddlers’ momentum, she then brought a draw to the team-tie scores after coming out on top in her match against Kyla Bernaldez. 

However, Ateneo was faced with another challenge as the Bulaqueña-Calvo duo’s efforts were not enough to close out on Jhoana Go and Mariana Caoile in the doubles match. With a final contest that saw Aguilar hoping to even the score out, crosscourt troubles put Ateneo at a disadvantage in consecutive sets. This match loss gave DLSU a 3-1 team-tie win over the Blue and White. 

[First Doubles]
DLSU takes a back-to-back set from Ateneo. The Blue Eagles almost forced a deuce but a misreceive result in DLSU win, 9-11.

Match Score: Ateneo 1 DLSU 2#UAAPTableTennis pic.twitter.com/192HFqmk5O

— Tristan A. Abuel (@Istan_TheGUIDON) November 21, 2022

The next match against the UE Lady Warriors kicked off with Borbon completing a sweep which was made possible by her outstanding plays in back-to-back sets. Building on Borbon’s momentum, Aguilar then carried over her dominance in the second contest against the Lady Warriors. Despite an early deficit in the third set, Aguilar was quick to trim the lead and maintain Ateneo’s winning streak in a three-straight set win. 

The strong pair of Bulaqueña and Calvo then stepped up to take the third Ateneo-UE match in their hands. Although both teams took turns dominating the first few sets, the Ateneo duo was able to force out a final do-or-die set. With offensive blocks and exceptional shots down the line, the Blue and White finished off the final decider with a triumphant 3-0 run in their favor.

[First Doubles]
Ateneo’s duo shows their experience with a dominant performance in the decider fifth set, 11-5.

Match Score: Ateneo 3 UE 2
Team Tie Score: Ateneo 3 UE 0#UAAPTableTennis pic.twitter.com/DxIFbboBP9

— Tristan A. Abuel (@Istan_TheGUIDON) November 21, 2022

The Ateneo Blue Eagles are set to face the Adamson University Lady Falcons, the DLSU Lady Paddlers, and the UP Fighting Maroons once again tomorrow, November 22 at the Makati Coliseum in the City of Makati for the third round of games. 

Set scores (Ateneo-UST): Ateneo – 3 UST – 1 

First Women’s Singles (Fabregar vs De Leon): 11-9, 11-5, 12-14, 11-8

Second Women’s Singles (Borbon vs Encarnacion): 4-11, 8-11, 13-11, 9-11 

First Women’s Doubles (Bulaqueña and Calvo vs Villanueva and Digamon): 11-8, 12-10, 8-11, 11-6

Third Women’s Singles (Aguilar vs Gabisay): 11-4, 7-11, 11-8, 7-11, 11-9

Set scores (Ateneo-DLSU): Ateneo – 1 DLSU – 3

First Women’s Singles (Fabregar vs Laude): 6-11, 5-11, 4-11

Second Women’s Singles (Borbon vs Bernaldez): 11-9, 3-11, 11-6, 6-11, 11-8

First Women’s Doubles (Bulaqueña and Calvo vs Go and Caoile): 11-3, 2-11, 9-11, 7-11

Third Women’s Singles (Aguilar vs Romero): 2-11, 6-11, 8-11

Set scores (Ateneo-UE): Ateneo – 3 UE – 0

First Women’s Singles (Borbon vs Valenzuela): 11-5, 11-7, 11-6

Second Women’s Singles (Aguilar vs Baltar): 11-8, 11-8, 11-8

First Women’s Doubles (Bulaqueña and Calvo vs Perez and Soriano): 14-12, 6-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-5