The UAAP football season will commence in about two weeks, but before the season starts the De La Salle University women’s football team has a golden chance to bag a pre-season title in the inaugural Women’s Soccer League (WSL).
Standing in the way of Coach Hans Smit’s cadettes are the ladies from España, the University of Santo Tomas women’s football team.
The championship game will be played on Sunday, November 18, at the De La Salle Santiago Zobel football field. Kick-off time is at 10 am.
Previous encounters
This fixture has always been known as a hotly-contested one because of its thrilling nature.
The last three games between La Salle and UST featured a draw and a win from both the green-clad ladies and their black-and-gold counterparts.
First of these three clashes was during the Finals of the UAAP Season 74 football season. The Lady Booters went into the championship with a twice-to-beat disadvantage against the Thomasians.
After 120 minutes of football, both sides failed to get a goal. Going into the penalty shootout, the Lady Booters forced a deciding match after winning 4-3. Haya Ibarra, a recent graduate of the Lady Booters team, stopped Jowe-Ann Barruga’s attempt, which led to La Salle’s triumph.
A week after, UST succeeded in plotting revenge after Barruga vindicated herself by scoring the only goal of the winner-take-all match. To make this UST victory sweeter, the España-based team won the championship—a bitter defeat for the Lady Booters.
A few weeks ago, the two teams met in Bacolod. After being knocked out by fellow UAAP rivals Ateneo and UP in the semifinals of the Philippine University Games (UniGames), La Salle and UST found themselves squaring off against each other once again.
This time around, the Lady Booters finished on the better end of a 1-0 match with rookie goal-getter Megan Diaz scoring a goal that placed the Taft-based third in this year’s competition.
Road to the finals
Going into the grand stage of the WSL, the Lady Booters had to play against UP, FEU, San Beda and Ateneo. Only FEU escaped defeat with a 2-2 draw against the Lady Booters.
The Global FC Women’s Team, an assembly of the country’s finest football players then and now in both football and futsal (indoor football), entered the semifinals.
After 90 minutes of action, the Lady Booters edged the stellar cast of Global FC players with a 1-0 win that landed the team a spot into the finals.
Filling the gaps
The departure of experienced players of La Salle from last year’s roster prompted Coach Hans Smit brought in a fresh batch of blue-chip rookies who could step up for DLSU in the UAAP.
By joining the Women’s Soccer League, the Green-and-White team has a chance to help the rookies adjust into the system. Moreover, the rookies have a chance to play cohesively alongside the veterans.
The rookies that have already seen action in the WSL are UniGames third place match goalscorer Diaz, women’s national team member and DLSU starting goalkeeper Inna Palacios, backup custodian Erika Turtur, forwards Kim Maligad and Angel Metillo, and defender Toni Nolasco.
Aside from the young blood, a new La Salle team led by a new string of veterans will be on play as the team battles its biggest game prior to the UAAP.
A peek into season 75
Going up against UST is never easy; the game promises to be as tight as their previous encounters.
The influx of new players from both camps could change the results of this matchup.
In the latest installment of this growing rivalry, two of the UAAP’s perennial contenders will go at it again, and only one will be crowned as the WSL Cup champion this Sunday.
