THE UST Lady Booters’ championship dream turned into a nightmare as they fell, 5-1, at the hands of the De La Salle University Lady Green Booters in the UAAP Women’s Football finals last Feb. 23 at the Ateneo field.
A week after they settled for a scoreless standoff in their last elimination round assignment, the España-based booters came out sluggish and failed to match the green-and-white booters’ intensity.
Rookie of the Year Stephanie Pheasant ignited DLSU’s fiery game with a goal early into the third minute of the game.
What was expected to be a down-the-wire match turned into a one-sided affair after UST failed to recover from its poor start.
A breakaway run by the Lady Archers in the 30th minute resulted in a goal by DLSU’s Ma. Jolina Alejandro.
At halftime, UST was staring at a 2-0 deficit against DLSU, which had a twice-to-beat advantage in the finals.
The second half was no different as Alejandro once again scored off a kick from the penalty area to give DLSU a commanding 3-0 lead after just eight minutes. Most Valuable Player (MVP) and national team member Marielle Benitez further hiked up the lead with a penalty goal in the 65th minute.
Joyce Landagan saved face for UST when she scored a goal in the 72nd minute to prevent a humiliating championship shutout.
Benitez put the icing on the cake for DLSU with another penalty shot in the 83rd minute of the game.
“Pinukpok na kami kaagad ng La Salle sa simula pa lang. Nahirapan nang maka-recover ang mga bata sa tindi ng depensa ng kalaban. Talagang malakas sila (DLSU),” said a dejected UST coach Gil Talavera, who failed to squeeze out a big farewell performance from the team’s heart and soul, national team mainstay Alelie Bonifacio.
Bonifacio, who was hounded by DLSU’s leech-like defense all game long, grabbed the best midfielder award as a consolation. Tied at six goals apiece before the championship game, Bonifacio lost the best striker award to Benitez thanks to the latter’s late two-goal outburst. A. T. Almo
