WHEN YOU lose your aces, you go with what’s left in the deck.
Fortunately for the UST Male Tennisters, holdovers from last year’s champion team delivered as they moved a step closer to sweeping the first round of the UAAP Lawn Tennis eliminations. They will ride on a clean 3-0 slate, going into an anticipated showdown with De La Salle University.
“If we want to win, we can’t win by our veterans alone,” coach Karl Santamaria said. “Everyone has to chip in. Right now, we have three rookies playing important roles in the team without our top players from last year and I told them to expect a hostile environment.”
Season 72 co-MVPs Raymond Villarete and Miguel Narvaez, who piloted the team to the championship last year, are not available this season. Villarete transferred to the College of St. Benilde, while Narvaez had an academic illegibility.
The Male Tennisters began their campaign by blanking the University of the Philippines (UP), 5-0, at the Rizal Tennis Court last January 16.
Promising rookie Kim Saraza played like a real veteran in whipping UP’s Daniel Echague in the first singles match, 6-2, 6-1, to draw first blood for UST.
Gerald Pinili and Ryan Montalbo followed suit, pulverizing the UP tandem of Julian Mendoza and Dennis Vitaliano in the first doubles match, 6-4, 6-1.
Team captain RK Barte, who is in his first playing year for UST in the UAAP, almost wiped out Justin Mendoza, 6-1, 6-0, in the second doubles match to increase UST’s advantage, 3-0.
Last season’s best rookie Arn Procianos joined the onslaught by rifling crosscourt shots and volleys to seize the third singles from UP’s Jay Lance Cinco, 6-2, 6-1.
UP gave the Espana-based tennisters a semblance of a fight in the second doubles match after a pulsating third set, which saw several deadlocks and lead changes. But the UST tandem of Al Potutan and Bernardine Bering still prevailed over Miguel Belda and Leandro Fernandez, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.
To cap off the tournament that day, UST rookie Bernanlou Bering finished the third singles match against Ateneo de Manila University’s Ayo Canlas, a no-bearing game which was postponed due to heavy rain last January 9. UST posted a 3-1 win against Ateneo. Bering lost to Canlas in a long three-setter, 6-4, 3-6, -6 but UST still emerged as the winner via a 3-2 verdict.
“He’s (Bernanlou Bering) showing a lot of fighting heart,” Santamaria said. “Although he lost the game today, he has been playing really well. I told him that I like the way he finished the match.”
A week after the win against the Katipunan-based tennisters, UST walked over the University of the East via a 5-0 shutout last January 15.
Wasted effort
The UST Lady Tennisters suffered its first defeat against the UP Lady Maroons, 2-3, at the Rizal Tennis Court last January 15 to drop down to second place, 1-1.
Coach Dennis Sta. Cruz blamed the loss on a bad draw.
“We were unfortunate since UP’s top players took advantage of the match-up,” Sta. Cruz said. “Their No.1 player took the first match easily.”
UP’s Sarah Jane Lim drew first blood, overpowering UST’s Nikki Manalo, 3-6, 2-6.
But UST bounced back with the double’s tandem of Dianne Bautista and Jhiji Hellar prevailing in a baseline war and emerging triumphant against Zhane Quitara and Madelene Ramos, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4.
UP exacted revenge, taking back the lead after Joie Alitche’s brutal 6-1, 6-1 win, trashing UST’s Lis Magaway
Unable to recover and helpless in both the baseline and the net, the duo of Kat Castro and Jacy Ortellano fell prey to UP’s Karen Guillermo and JV Custodio. The last game was won by UST’s Len Santos, who pounded the baseline with groundstrokes to topple UP’s Julie Botor out of the game, 6-3, 6-3.
“I didn’t expect the [duo in the] second doubles match to lose since they were our best pair,” Sta. maria said.
UST opened the season with a victory over Ateneo, 3-2, at the Rizal Tennis court last January 8.
