Following a two-day drought, the Green Tennisters saw the landscape of their standings change in momentous victories, for the Singles and Doubles Division, over the AdU Soaring Falcons, 4-1, at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center today, February 21.
EJ Geluz and Fernando “Nonoy” Po dominated the Men’s Singles Division and assembled La Salle’s first two points of the season. Meanwhile, tandems Enzo Enriquez and Brysl Libao for the first doubles; and RJ Virrey and Leyton Portin for the doubles match finalizer, swept the Men’s Doubles Division, tallying another two points to claim the Green-and-White’s first victory of the UAAP Season 86 Tennis Tournament.
Maximizing endurance
Opening the Men’s Singles Division, Green Tennister Po showcased his tenacity in an exhilarating three-set match against Soaring Falcon Miecoz Candelasa. Despite being down by three to nothing early on in the match, Po bounced back and tied the game at 5-all; but this energetic effort fell short of snagging the game from the Soaring Falcons, 7-5. The Green Tennisters remained keen on securing their first win of the season, as Po managed to snap back and prevail in the second and third sets, 7-5, in a seemingly endless battle of endurance.
The second match saw a different outing as DLSU’s Ohye Tortal battled against AdU’s Ramon Bentillo. Tortal gained an early two-point advantage but was then overpowered by the Soaring Falcon, 7-5. Despite his fervent determination, the second set ended with the Green Tennisters conceding to the Soaring Falcons, 6-3. Representing the Green Tennisters in the final singles match of the day was Green Tennister Team Captain Geluz versus Soaring Falcon Jerald Delos Santos. The Lasallian was able to highlight his abilities early on in the match. After a continuous exchange of points, he was able to close off the first set strong with an outstanding 6-4 score. The captain of the team delivered an exceptional performance sweeping the second set, 6-0, to conclude their match in spectacular fashion.
Two-fold triumph
The Green Tennisters in the Men’s Doubles Division showed eagerness in their matchups, where the Enriquez-Libao tandem asserted themselves in their two-set game. The pair did not take more than an hour to affix their win, denying the Soaring Falcons room to breathe during the two sets with 6-2 and 6-0 on the scoreboard.
In the next doubles match, the Virrey-Portin pair of the Green Tennisters was overcome by opponents Amba and Correos of the Soaring Falcons during the first set, with a close score of 6-4. Refusing to give up easily, Virrey and Portin equalized the match by drawing a 6-2 set win. At the time of the third set, La Salle had already locked in its first win of the season as Geluz swept the third singles match. However, seeing that this was the team’s first win, the Virrey-Portin tandem was determined to strengthen La Salle’s arch, delivering an enduring match that tallied 7-3 and handed the Green-and-White their fourth win of the day.
The Green Tennisters’ captain Geluz asserted that while they succeeded in their first triumph, they would not be complacent: “This victory is our wake-up call, and we are not yet satisfied with this victory alone. We will perform our best for the next games.”
When asked about their feelings for their succeeding matches, Geluz expressed that the Green Tennisters are excited for their next matches, “This first win is a feeling we don’t want to lose as it keeps us motivated to win the upcoming games.”
Now with a 1-2 win-loss record, the Green Tennisters are putting on the gear for their road to redemption, which they will bring to their next weekend matchups on February 24 and 25, against the UST Growling Tigers and NU Bulldogs, respectively, at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center.
