By Jean Malanum
MANILA – Defending champion University of Santo Tomas and National University won their respective ties Wednesday to reach the Final Four of the UAAP Season 87 men’s tennis tournament at the Felicisimo Ampon Tennis Center in the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila.
UST clobbered University of the Philippines, 4-1, while NU demolished Ateneo de Manila University, 5-0.
UST and NU have similar 7-1 records followed by UP (6-3), University of the East (5-3), Ateneo (3-6), Adamson University (2-7) and De La Salle University (0-9).
UST’s Ericjay Tangub defeated Miguel Iglupas, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4; Nilo Ledama rallied past Lance Fernandez, 6-7 (1), 6-3, 6-3; Richard Bautista and Nash Agustines downed Loucas Fernandez and Raymund Goco, 7-6(3), 6-2; while Steven Sonsona and Symon Jaculan scored a 7-6(2), 6-2 win over Andrei Jarata and Ava Mandac.
UP’s Aslan Carbonilla turned back Sebastian Santos, 4-6, 6-1, 6-1, in the third singles match.
“We can’t afford to relax just yet. Our daily routine remains the same —training and ensuring our players maintain their fitness because that’s where matches are often decided. When games drag on, some players tend to cramp up, so having a therapist who takes care of their conditioning is really crucial,” UST assistant coach Johnny Arcilla said.
“We have confidence in our players because they’re experienced veterans. We have an MVP and a rookie-MVP, so our mindset is to stay focused for now,” he added.
Meanwhile, Andrei Padao’s 6-0, 6-3 win over JD Velez in the first singles set the tone for the Bulldogs.
EJ Tugade conquered Stef Gurria, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4, in the second singles and Jules Lazaro whipped Gab Quintana, 6-0, 6-0, in the third singles.
Christian Padilla and Angil Balaoing clobbered JJ Llavore and Gian Camingue, 6-3, 6-2, while Gab Bandoquillo and Aljon Talatayod completed the sweep with a 6-0, 6-1 win over JB Cuarto and Aidyll Ignacio in the second doubles match.
“The same thing happened to us last year when we reached the Final Four, we know that just because we’ve made it doesn’t mean we can relax, so we’re thankful for this win,” NU head coach Ronard Joven said.
“In our team, no one can afford to let their guard down. We need to give our all because we’re aiming for that number one or two spots. So they really need to stay focused and keep grinding in every match because even if we’re already in the Final Four, you never know what might happen,” he added.
In the other tie, Adamson University beat De La Salle University, 4-1.
La Salle took a 1-0 lead when EJ Geluz won over Angelo Rosales, 6-7(1), 6-2, 3-0 (ret.) in the first singles match but Adamson swept the next four matches.
Ramon Bentillo beat Ohye Tortal, 5-7, 6-2, 6-3; Miecoz Candelasa downed Yassan Al-Anazi, 6-4, 6-4; Herald Aton and Emmanuel Pedrosa defeated Leyton Portin and JT Bernardo, 4-6, 6-3, 10-3; while Tristan Correos and Nikko Lumahang won the second doubles match over Keno Enriquez and Marcus Guinoo, 6-4, 3-6, 4-0 (ret.). (PNA)
