DETERMINED TO claim redemption, the Ateneo Blue Eagles crushed the De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Shuttlers, 3-0, to advance to the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 88 Men’s Badminton Finals. The Final Four bout took place earlier today, October 21, at the Rizal Memorial Badminton Hall in the City of Manila.

With the critical victory, the Blue Eagles book their fifth-straight appearance in the finals, with a chance to redeem their second-place finish from Season 87. Notably, they will be playing against the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons in the Finals for the first time in UAAP Men’s Badminton history.

Starting the Blue Eagles’ playoff run, Team Captain Lyrden Laborte faced off against the Green Shuttlers’ Miguel Cuarte. In first set action, the Blue Eagle skipper started slow, allowing a 5-all deadlock off of faltering defense. Laborte then broke the deadlock and his rust with easy points by sending shots in unreturnable areas, giving him a three-point advantage, 10-7. Despite surrendering another two points with errors, the Ateneo shuttler enforced his will through forceful smashes towards the other side, gaining the Blue Eagles the advantage into the interval, 11-9.

Laborte got out of the short break in trouble, as Ateneo’s shots missed the mark, allowing DLSU to crawl back into the game, 12-11. The Blue Eagle skipper soon calmed things down after sending a shot to the opposite corner to keep him ahead, 13-11. The point ballooned into a 3-1 sprint, giving Laborte considerable ground to end the set comfortably, 16-12. Continued back-and-forth exchanges did not favor the Ateneo veteran, seeing his advantage dwindle to 19-17. In response, Laborte utilized drop shots to stun the Green Shuttlers in consecutive possessions, winning Ateneo the first set, 21-17.

Laborte found his hot offense carry into the second set, as he jumped to a 5-0 advantage in the opening possessions. However, a string of miscues, due to Laborte sending shots outside, fizzled Ateneo’s advantage to 5-3. The Blue Eagle cleaned up his mistakes, continuing his masterful offense, 9-3. Laborte’s adversary attempted plenty of shots, but the Atenean skipper denied any momentum for DLSU, entering the interval, 11-4.

Laborte then struggled with nagging errors and shot faults that fizzled his lead to a two-point advantage, 16-14. Sensing the urgency of the match, Laborte recalibrated his approach and went off on a 4-0 surge, extending his lead, 20-14. Despite tackling on two errors, Laborte returned a quick rally to the back, winning the Blue Eagles their first team-tie point of the morning, 21-16.

Up next in singles action for the Blue Eagles, rookie JR Pandi secured a well-earned 2-0 victory over DLSU Shuttler Lovic Javier.

Pandi’s opening combination of power and precision gave the Blue Eagle a slight advantage early in the first set, 7-6. With both players exhibiting impressive defense, Pandi’s close range drop shots stirred trouble for his opponent, extending his lead, 14-10. Continuing to frustrate Javier into errors, the Blue Eagle took full control of momentum, grabbing the first set, 21-14.

The onset of the second set saw Pandi attack his adversary’s porous forecourt defense, surging ahead, 4-0. Displaying his quick reflexes, the Atenean’s stunning defensive effort kept him in front, 8-5. Despite his momentum derailing, 14-12, the Blue Eagle stabilized himself with a pair of thunderous smashes, 16-12. With the team’s second match point within reach, the rookie star staved off Javier’s valiant effort, claiming the second set, 21-17.

One team point away from punching their ticket into the finals, the Blue Eagles unleashed the fiery duo of Laborte and Robby Ramos to go toe-to-toe against DLSU’s Joshua Morada and Yuan Tan.

The explosive tandem’s dynamic chemistry was evident at the onset of the first set, as Ramos’s service ace gave the Blue Eagles a 4-1 lead. Capitalizing on their Taft-based counterparts’ error-laden performance, the Blue Eagles mounted an impressive 7-1 run to take a commanding advantage, 11-2.

However, the Green Shuttlers battled back, as Morado’s backcourt hammer cut the Blue Eagle lead down to six, 13-7. Remaining relentless in their pursuit of redemption, the Blue Eagles stabilized themselves, prompting the DLSU pair into a slew of inaccurate shots to reestablish Ateneo’s lead, 19-12. Two points away from a first set triumph, Laborte’s intelligent play at the net caused two more errors from Tan, rewarding the first set to Ateneo, 21-12.

The second set started in a much tighter affair, with the two squads deadlocked at 5. Eager to create separation from their opponents, the team turned to Laborte’s powerful attacks to distance themselves, 10-5. However, the Green Shuttlers retaliated once more, riding a 4-2 run to decrease Ateneo’s lead, 12-9.

Unable to halt DLSU’s momentum, the Blue and White found their advantage cut even further, 13-12. Relying on Ramos on this occasion, the Katipunan-based squad reclaimed a crucial three point lead following the star sophomore’s decisive finishes, 17-14. However, Morada and Tan responded once more, tying the match at 17-all.

After the two teams exchanged multiple rallies, 19-19, it was the Green Shuttlers who eventually seized the second set, following Ramos’s return that went straight into the net, 19-21.

Looking to shake off their defeat in the second set, the Loyola Heights unit roared back, as Ramos’s drive shot put Ateneo in front, 7-4. With Laborte controlling the action at the net, another well-placed lob shot from the Blue Eagle stalwart increased the Ateneo lead, 11-6.

The Blue Eagle pairing continued to step on the gas, ballooning their lead to 17-10 following another Ramos ace. Despite a 4-2 run from their opponents, 19-14, the Blue Eagles would not be denied, as Ramos’s cross court shot clinched Ateneo’s spot in the Finals, 21-16.

Following their emphatic 3-0 victory, Captain Laborte says the Blue Eagles are steadfast on reclaiming their UAAP crown. “Siyempre, grateful and happy rin, but at the same time, dapat focused pa rin kami sa goal,” Laborte shared.

(Obviously, we’re grateful and happy, but at the same time, we should stay focused on our goal.) 

The Blue Eagles will take on the UP Fighting Maroons tomorrow in the UAAP Season 88 Finals, October 22, at 8:00 AM in the same venue.

Team-tie Score:

Ateneo-DLSU: 3-0

Results:

First Singles: Laborte (Ateneo) def. Cuarte (DLSU), 21-17, 21-16

Second Singles: Pandi (Ateneo) def. Javier (DLSU), 21-14, 21-17

First Doubles: Laborte & Ramos (Ateneo) def. Morada & Tan (DLSU), 21-12, 19-21, 21-16