ALTHOUGH UST may be 18 points behind perennial title contender De La Salle University (DLSU) in the general championship race, there’s no need to press the panic button just yet.
After 10 events, host school DLSU leads the pack with 122 points, while University of the Philippines is in third with 98.
But UST is hot on DLSU’s trail, with two title events in men’s table tennis and women’s swimming. It also scored four first runner-up and five second-runner-up finishes.
UST’s rookie-laden female Tiger Sharks went against all odds and captured the women’s swimming division plum, unseating the DLSU Tankers. Lovely Tuatis and Fatima Amago contributed the bulk of points for UST, dominating several events and breaking records in the four-day swimming tourney.
Bannered by veteran Louie Marquez and Rookie of the Year Geeno Galac, the male splashers found themselves just 52 points short of denying pool champs UP of their title retention bid.
The Male and Female Woodpushers also settled for second-place finishes after leading most of the eliminations. The Winston Silva-mentored male chessers improved on their third-place finish, while the wards of Ronald Dableo upped their game from thier fourth-place showing last season.
Optimistic Table Tennis head coach Henberd Ortalla succeeded in leading the Male Paddlers to a “three-peat.” The deadly duo of MVP Harold Baring and former MVP Celedonio Pisan delivered sterling performances in their final UAAP season for UST. On the distaff side, the female Paddlers, with veteran Jaymee Yanga at the helm, were denied of a fourth consecutive championship by arch-rival DLSU.
Coach Augusto Santamaria’s Volleybelles repeated a bridesmaid finish this year, losing again to the Ramil de Jesus-led Green Spikers, who swept the elimination round.
Meanwhile, the Tiger Spikers improved on their worst finish in the last two decades and earned a Final Four ticket this season. But thier loss to the UP Spikers in their semis battle relegated them to fourth place.
The basketball teams’ finishes seem to be getting worse by the year. After an unexpected blast in the first round of the eliminations, the Growling Tigers, who saw the last of swingman Christian Luanzon, went winless in the second round to land in a disappointing seventh place. On the other hand, the Lady Tigresses’ lackluster campaign in Season 67 relegated them to sixth place.
A repeat feat
Incidentally, UST also suffered from an 18-point deficit at the end of the first round last year, but carried on to capture its 31st UAAP general championship title, its 21st in the last 22 years.
“OK lang iyon,” swimming head coach Cyrus Alcantara said. “Malakas talaga ang first round sports ng DLSU. But sa second round, we usually overtake them sa standings.”
Luanzon echoes Alcantara’s statement, citing the Bible, “In Romans 8:28, it says that everything will come according to God’s plan.”
Chesser Bob Jones Liwagon believes that UST, as the undisputed over-all champion, can win it in the long run. “Makakahabol ang UST sa second semester. May tiwala ako na over-all champion ulit this year.”
Track and field, softball, baseball, football, lawn tennis, badminton, judo, fencing, and taekwondo will kick off this November.
The Tiger Judokas and Jins are expected to deliver twin kills once more. The Tennisters, meanwhile, are bent on capturing the championship after the DLSU netters denied them of a “three-peat” last year. Their female counterparts, who finished second last season, hope to deny DLSU of another title in the event.
Last season, UST also suffered narrow misses in softball, baseball, men’s badminton, women’s athletics, and women’s fencing. Other teams who did not fare very well last season, will step up and assert dominance in their playing fields to elevate UST’s position in the standings.
