CHAMPIONS at last.
The UST Lady Booters completed a scintillating upset of twice-to-beat De La Salle University via a 4-1 shootout last March 3 at the Ateneo Erenchun field to finally clinch their first UAAP title since the inception of women’s football in the league 14 years ago.
“They wanted to win, so they set out to do just that,” said coach Rozano Estrabon, whose mentoring debut with the Lady Booters came this season.
And that’s not just talk.
Staring at a 0-1 deficit after Natasha Alquiros pushed the Lady Archers up front in the 67th minute, Lady Booter Aiza Mordero rifled a morale-boosting equalizer past La Salle keeper Hannah Ibarra just eight minutes later to keep UST afloat.
Despite failing to break the ice in overtime, the Lady Booters gained the early upper hand come shootout period, nailing a pair of goals from Shiralyn Francisco and Jovelyn Artillaga and sandwiching Karla Pacificador’s first point for La Salle.
After a misaim by Lady Archer Maria Clarissa Lazaro, UST skipper Aprilyn Reyes booted another one in for the Lady Booters, pegging the score at 3-1.
La Salle again tried to inch closer with ace striker Samantha Nierras on the firing end. But UST keeper Irish Rapal stood her ground, blocking Nierras’ attempt to the dismay of the green-and-white gallery before Lady Booter Jema Climente closed the deal at 4-1.
Veteran Mary Ignacio was named tournament MVP while Marianne Narciso, Louella Amamio, and Rapal bagged the Rookie of the Year (ROY), Best Defender, and Best Goalkeeper awards, respectively.
Earlier, the Lady Booters relied on the homestretch heroics of stalwarts Ignacio and Reyes to force a winner-take-all finals showdown with La Salle, 2-0, last Feb. 26.
Prior to the championship meeting, UST etched a scoreless draw with La Salle on Feb. 18, three days after taking a 3-0 loss against Ateneo.
Earlier in the tournament, UST recorded back-to-back victories against Far Eastern University (FEU) in a controversial 2-0 walk-over, and the University of the Philippines (UP), 1-0, last Feb. 12 and Feb. 8 respectively.
Second-round collapse
In the men’s play, the Golden Booters slipped to fourth place with a 3-2-5 win-draw-loss card.
“We struggled because of crucial injuries, suspension of a key player, and perhaps, our bench is not that deep,” coach Marjo Allado said after the Golden Booters absorbed a 3-0 blanking from the Ateneo Blue Guards last Feb. 22.
Ateneo’s Jose Peralta opened the scoring with an inside drive in the 13th minute.
Golden Booter Joel Bones tried to retaliate in the 18th minute with a left corner kick, but which landed straight into the hands of Ateneo goalkeeper Mikhail Manglapus.
Nine minutes after Peralta’s goal, Blue Guard Juan Siojo gave Ateneo its second goal. Siojo again made his presence felt in the 35th minute, burying an open shot to put Ateneo beyond the Golden Booters’ reach until the final whistle.
“Our team is young. The good side of it is that they gained more experience and determination for next year,” coach Allado said.
On Feb. 15, the Golden Booters fell into a 3-0 UE trap before yielding to UP, 2-0, last Feb. 19.
In its previous matches, UST ripped La Salle, 2-0, last Feb. 11, to offset a 1-0 nipping from defending champion FEU last Feb. 8.
