The DLSU Green Shuttlers again concluded the campaign with bronze medals in UAAP Season 75 Men’s Badminton Championships at the Rizal Memorial Badminton Hall last September 2.
Fresh from a five-game winning streak, including the semi-finals win against UST, the Green Shuttlers advanced in the hopes of reaching the crown only to meet familiar foe, the ADMU Blue Eagles.
Defending champion Ateneo ended the match with a one-sided 3-1 win over the Taft-based squad. The Green Shuttlers closed the elimination round at third and exited, as the top contenders, National University and Ateneo de Manila University, battle it out for the number one spot on Saturday.
Odds against them
The Green Shuttlers suffered the same fate last year from Ateneo that earned a twice to beat advantage after ranking second.
The second doubles of the team tie ended the quest of the Taft-based squad as Gerald Sibayan and Carlos Cayanan bowed down to Patrick Natividad and Tobi Gadi’s flurry of smashes, which penetrated the defenses of the DLSU pair, ending the game, 21-13, 21-13.
The first set of the match-up seemed ineffective for the Green Shuttlers as Gadi and Natividad duo doubled their scores in every deadlock encounter, wrapping it up with a constant 4-1 exchange. A 7-0 run ended Sibayan and Cayanan’s quest in the second set as Natividad blocked the smashes while Gadi executed power shots to score the win.
In an effort to put the Green-and-White squad back into the action, the tested pair of Ronel Estanislao and Lance Bautista tried and dominated JC Carlos and Mico Mallilin, 21-10, 21-10 in the first doubles of the match.
The second singles, however, failed to sustain the green momentum; Kenneth Monterubio suffered his first loss of the season after squaring off against reigning MVP Gadi, who ended the match-up, 19-21, 14-21. Monterubio raised the team’s hopes as he led in the beginning of the first set while maintaining a close trail behind Gadi after the table turned.
Gadi continued to dominate though as he snatched the first set from behind, and continued on to increase his lead over Monterubio in the second set.
The Taft-based squad started the game with a loss; DLSU’s JC Clarito dueled with Ateneo’s Natividad in a hard fought first singles, resulting to the first loss, 21-13, 20-22, 21-15. Natividad easily secured a win over Clarito with a mix of set-ups and smashes. Clarito in the second set fought harder to shift the momentum back to La Salle as he made a comeback victory through his quick return of shots. The third set, however, failed to follow through, as Clarito could not keep Natividad’s shots contained, giving Ateneo the win.
Note: The UAAP Badminton tournament is using a team-tie format where a team has to win three out of five matches. The last singles between Shuttlers’ Team Captain Estanislao and Justin Natividad did not push through because Ateneo had already won three matches.
