Sept. 21, 2014, 9:52 p.m. – THE UST Paddlers opened their UAAP
Season 77 second-round campaign at the Ateneo Blue Eagle Gym Sunday with
rousing victories to improve their chances in the table tennis Final Four.
The Paddlers earlier lost to
an undefeated De La Salle University, 0-3, but bounced back against the
University of the East and first-round second placers University of the
Philippines.
UST finished the first day
of the second round in second place with a 2-1 win-loss record and 7-3 overall
(5-2 in the first round).
“Malaki ang chance
natin na mag-second sa pagtatapos ng round na ito and we will get a
twice-to-beat advantage which is good for us,” UST head coach Jackson Que
said.
While his team performed
better compared with the last round, Que believes his squad has yet to reveal
its full potential. “Gusto ko lumabas ‘yung tibay ng loob nila na gusto
nila manalo, ‘yung will to win talaga,” he said.
UST gave the struggling UP
Paddlers a beating after a stellar performance from Gil Ablanque who closed the
match in straight sets and gave the victory to the Tiger Paddlers, 3-1.
Meanwhile, the UST Lady
Paddlers emerged victorious over National University and Ateneo de Manila to
inch closer to the top 3 with a 2-1 slate in the second round.
UST moved up to 5-4 overall
after finishing 3-3 in the opening round.
The Lady Paddlers had a
chance to sweep their games but lost steam and bowed against defending champion
UP, 1-3.
Lady Paddler Girly Apas gave
UST an early boost after defeating Lusha Maderal of UP, 3-1, to establish a 1-0
lead over the Lady Maroons.
However, UST failed to keep
the momentum and lost three straight games as UP turned to their defense to
secure the victory.
“Sira sila sa
combination talaga, kahit anong pilit hindi nila makuha yung
combinations,” Lady Paddlers coach Lori Wadjad said. “‘Yung offense
nila laging nabo-block.”
Despite a sub-par
performance to open the second round, Wadjad believes the team will bounce back
to try to keep their playoff hopes alive.
The UST Paddlers will try to
wrap up the elimination round with Final Four berths on Sept. 29, Monday at the
same venue. Games scheduled last Saturday, Sept. 20 were postponed due to
Typhoon Mario. Josiah Darren Saynes
