UST, UP set for ballpark doubleheader

c/o Tiebreaker Times

UAAP Season 86 Standings

Baseball

x-DLSU 7-3

x-NU 7-3

x-Ateneo 5-5

y-UP 4-6

y-UST 4-6

AdU 3-7

(x - Final Four, y- Playoff)

Softball

z-AdU 8-0

y-UP 5-3

y-UST 5-3

DLSU 1-7

Ateneo 1-7

(z - Finals, y - Playoff)

Games Saturday at the UP Diliman Baseball Field

8 a.m. - UP vs UST (Baseball Playoff for #4)

4 p.m. - UP vs UST (Softball Playoff for Finals Berth)

A unique doubleheader is scheduled on Saturday at the UP Baseball Field inside the Diliman campus, as sub-hosts the University of the Philippines tangle with the University of Santo Tomas for the right to enter the postseason.

Kicking things off in the morning is the baseball playoff at 8am, with the winner designated to be the fourth seed in the Final Four and gets to face La Salle next week.

The defending champions helped set the table with a dramatic walk-off triumph on Thursday afternoon over the Golden Sox, 10-9, a matchup that needed an additional inning to finish.

That was then followed by a dramatic 15-12 come-from-behind outcome by the Fighting Maroons against Ateneo to force a playoff.

Kobe Torres shut the door on the Blue Eagles that evening, closing things out after his teammates scored four runs in the bottom of the eighth inning.

UP head coach Anthony Dizer says about this matchup, "If you want to win this game, you have to earn it. Hindi ibibigay sa atin 'to."

The Golden Sox cooled off after winning three of their first four matches, losing four straight and five of the last six.

Head coach Jeffrey Santiago still believes in his wards in spite of their struggles, as they try to secure their first postseason berth since UAAP Season 79.

"Mental toughness ang kailangan ng mga bata. Kalimutan na nila yung mga talo namin. Maayos na mindset at matulog ng maaga ang kailangan namin," he says.

To end this slide, reigning MVP Justine Rosales needs to lead the way for the Espana-based batters.

In the afternoon, a stake in the softball finals beckons between these schools at 4pm, hoping to be the foil to Adamson's quest for an eleventh straight title.

The Fighting Maroons did their part with a 15-0 shellacking of Ateneo on Wednesday, while UST was forced into this situation after bowing to the Lady Falcons to close out the elimination round, 4-1.

That scoreline also happened to be the result of the second round meeting between the two teams, allowing UP to have a flicker of hope for a return trip to the finals.

Fresh from a mercy rule-invoked victory, UP head coach Ron Pagkaliwagan hopes that this can translate into the playoff.

He says, "Yun lang naman 'yung hihintay ko na lumabas 'yung totoong laro ng UP talaga. Kanina nakita ko yung totoong laro nila na maayos ang defense, maganda ang palo, at ang pitching. Sana magtuluy-tuloy hanggang championship."

UP is expected to field KC Valino on the mound. The sophomore hopes to get adequate run support  from a unit that is led by last season's MVP Nickole dela Cruz, Martine Francisco, and Danica Aquino.

Even with the defeat, UST head coach Sandy Barredo remains unfazed, as the Tiger Softbelles seek their first finals appearance post-pandemic.

He notes, "Dadalawa lang naman ‘to e, kung makaka-hit kami, mananalo kami. Kung hindi, dadaanin namin sa depensa. Basta kami, maglalaro kami bukas."

Although both teams split their head-to-head appearances in the eliminations, both UP teams will be designated as home teams due to a better tiebreaker.

FEU outlasts Ateneo in UAAP Men's Volleyball

c/o UAAP

Men

FEU 8 1

NU 8 2

DLSU 6 3

UST 6 4

Ateneo 5 5

AdU 4 5

UE 1 8

UP 0 10

Games Tuesday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum

10 a.m. – AdU vs FEU (Men)

12 noon – DLSU vs UE (Men)

2 p.m. – AdU vs FEU (Women)

4 p.m. – DLSU vs UE (Women)

Far Eastern University outlasted Ateneo de Manila University Ateneo de Manila University in five sets, 25-20, 20-25, 18-25, 25-18, 15-12, to stay on top of the UAAP Season 86 Men’s Volleyball Tournament at the SM Mall of Asia Arena on Thursday.

Outside hitters JJ Javelona and Andrei Delicana and middle blocker Martin Bugaoan provided the much-needed hits for the Tamaraws in the fifth set.

Javelona’s early heater allowed FEU to race to a 6-3 lead while Delicana kept the run going for a 13-8 advantage.

Although the Blue Eagles were able to inch within two, 11-13, due to three straight errors by their foes, Bugaoan made the finishing touches for the Tamaraws win in two hours and seven minutes.

“Yung game kanina too much errors kami. Ang daming kailangang repasuhin. Kung nagtitriple na kaming focus sa ensayo, baka dapat mas lalo pang doblehin,” said FEU head coach Eddieson Orcullo as they committed 24 miscues.

The Tamaraws stretched their winning streak to four games, improving to a league-leading 8-1 record.

Delicana led FEU with 19 points on 14 attacks and five blocks while Javelona and Dryx Saavedra got 16 points apiece.

Bugaoan also wound up with 13 points.

FEU will shoot for its fifth straight victory on Tuesday against Adamson University at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.

Jian Salarzon paced Ateneo with 21 points and 27 excellent receptions while Ken Batas poured in 17 points.

The Blue Eagles dropped to 5-5, trailing behind fourth-running University of Santo Tomas (6-4) by a game in the race for the last Final Four berth.

Ateneo will seek to bounce back on Wednesday against National University at the same Pasay venue.

UST readies for potential UAAP tennis double

c/o UAAP

Ties Wednesday at the Felicisimo Ampon Tennis Center

7:30 a.m. - UST vs Ateneo (Men's Finals Tie 1)

7:30 a.m. - NU vs UST (Women's Finals Tie 1)

The UAAP is set to start the finals of its collegiate tennis tournament on Wednesday morning, with the Felicismo Ampon Tennis Center inside the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex set to host the men's and women's finals simultaneously.

Fresh from winning key ties just over a week ago, the University of Santo Tomas is hopeful it can pull off a collegiate double with its Male and Female Tennisters.

The former locked in their spot in the finals after dispatching National University, 3-2 in the Final Four, behind the efforts of reigning Most Valuable Player Nilo Ledama.

Serving as the obstacle to a record fifteenth title is Ateneo, who defeated the University of the East in the other semifinal fixture, 3-1.

Potential Rookie of the Year candidate JD Velez ensured a repeat of last year's finals matchup after outlasting Marc Nicole Suson in the second singles match, 6-3 7-5 6-4.

UST won both elimination round ties this season with 4-1 scorelines, something they are hopeful to build on for a successful title retention campaign.

Male Tennisters mentor Johnny Arcilla shares, "Last time nakalaban natin [ang Ateneo] head-to-head 2-0 tayo lamang tayo [UST] eh so hindi pa sila nananalo sa’min eh. Di pa sila [Ateneo] nananalo samin simula noong first round. So, sana magtuluy-tuloy."

Meanwhile, the Female Tennisters will have a tough task on their hands, with National University serving as the final boss after the Lady Bulldogs swept through the eliminations, including 3-2 victories in both of their meetings this season.

Mae Bornia is seeking to extend their reign to a third consecutive season against the squad led by Alexei Santos. The reigning Most Valuable Player shares about their matchup, "We are excited na maglaro po in the Finals ulit. But mindset talaga namin ngayon is mag-focus and one game at a time."

Santos and company needed a playoff to secure their spot in the finals, outlasting UP, 4-1.

UST, NU seeking postseason berth in women's volley

c/o UAAP

Standings W L

Women

UST 8 1

DLSU 7 1

NU 7 2

FEU 4 4

Ateneo 3 6

UE 2 6

AdU 2 6

UP 1 8

Men

FEU 7 1

NU 7 2

DLSU 5 3

Ateneo 5 4

UST 5 4

AdU 4 4

UE 1 7

UP 0 9

Games today at the SM Mall of Asia Arena

10 a.m. – NU vs UE (Men)

12 noon – UST vs AdU (Men)

2 p.m. – NU vs UE (Women)

4 p.m. – UST vs AdU (Women)

Both the University of Santo Tomas and National University seek to solidify their spot into the postseason against separate opposition when the UAAP Season 86 women's volleyball tournament resumes on Wednesday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

Fresh from an intense four-set classic which the Lady Bulldogs won, 23-25 25-17 25-21 25-20, they and the Golden Tigresses are hopeful to put a gap between them and the rest of the league as they try to lock in spots in the Final Four, as well as the twice-to-beat advantage that comes with finishing in the top two.

The defeat proved to be a teaching moment for UST, as they suffered their first defeat of the season.

Head coach Kungfu Reyes shares, "Marami kaming natutunan this time. Ang maganda naman, as early as this, as early as second game ng second round na naramdaman na namin or nakita na namin talaga na yung somehow yung breaking point na tinatawag namin."

With the possibility that the rest of the league has figured out their tendencies, Reyes hopes that they would show some grit in their upcoming matches. He says, "That's why yun yung mga department na talagang i-enhance pa namin na dapat matutunan. So again, sa mental toughness, yung how to recover especially yung mga body language, yun yung mga tinitignan namin ngayon."

At the same time, he adds, "So I'll just remind-- ni-remind ko rin sila sa dugout... we lose a point, we lose a set but do not lose our character and this time we lost a game definitely dapat hindi mawala yung character na meron kami."

A win against Adamson in the final game of the quadruple-header not only will lock in a fourth straight postseason berth for the Golden Tigresses, but also extends their lead over currently second-place La Salle to a full game.

The Lady Falcons have sputtered to a 2-6 record heading into the Holy Week break, but a win would put themselves level with idle Ateneo at fifth place, just a game and a half behind Far Eastern University.

In other women's volleyball matchup scheduled, NU hopes to use their win against UST as momentum towards a strong finish to the eliminations.

Bella Belen shared to the media after their win, "Drive to win the game kasi every game, need dapat may improvement. So, yun yung nakikita sa teammates ko and sa team namin na kada game, talagang nag-i-improve kami."

Serving as their obstacle is the University of the East, who is seeking their first three-win campaign since 2019.

The Lady Warriors are tied with Adamson at 2-6, and still have postseason aspirations, but it's all about taking it one game at a time.

Casiey Dongallo shares, "... We’re hoping to win more than one more game para maging masaya naman."

Men's action will kick off the day's action in Pasay, with NU hoping to get additional wiggle room against a UE side bound to another sub .500 campaign at 10am.

Meanwhile at noon, last season's losing finalists UST will face off against an improved Adamson side that has postseason aspirations.

Gilas Women seeks strong finish at FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup

The Philippines seeks to secure a strong finish at the 2024 edition of the FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup on Sunday inside the Singapore Sports Hub.

Gilas Women has won all five of their assignments so far. They survived qualifying with victories over Tahiti (21-3), Maldives (19-11), and Kazakhstan (21-12) to earn a spot in pool play, where they took care of business against Mongolia and Malaysia.

Jhazmin Joson got hot from deep against the former, finishing up with eleven points anchored on four two-point buckets, in a 19-8 win.

Gilas Women scored the first five points of the match and never looked back, erecting a 10-3 lead with five minutes left, raising it to 17-7 after a Kaye Pingol two-pointer with 126 seconds left. A free throw from Joson capped the score for the Filipinas with thirteen seconds left.

As for the latter, they followed a similar playbook. They racked up a 5-1 lead on their way to a 17-10 triumph. This time, it was a balanced scoring effort. Joson still led the quartet with six points, but both Mikka Cacho and Pingol netted four each, with Clarin scoring the remaining three points. The National University standout also added six rebounds in the effort.

Although they misfired from deep against their ASEAN neighbors with their 1/7 performance behind the arc, Gilas Women made up for it with their effort inside, going 15/26. They also made it difficult for their opposition, forcing thirteen turnovers.

Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas program chief for 3x3 Eric Altamirano says about Gilas Women's success so far and what lies ahead, "We’re thrilled with our victories against the tough and experienced teams from Mongolia and Malaysia. Now, our focus shifts to Chinese Taipei, who put up a strong fight against China in the main draw. It’s time to maintain our focus and give it our all in the upcoming match in the quarterfinals."

Gilas Women assistant coach Mark Solano shares about the team getting extra motivation in their opening pool play matchup against Mongolia, "When we were preparing for our game vs the Mongolians, the (PH) ladies were all pumped up especially when they learned that there are two Olympians on that team. It added fuel to their fire. Kaya nung pag-check ball pa lang and we blazed into a 5-0 start, the ladies never looked back. Doon nagulat din ang Mongolia with our speed, toughness and yung pagiging pesky natin sa defense. Sobrang big factor din that we are making our 2-pt shots."

Solano adds, "During the Malaysia game, we knew them already kasi we had a lot of tune-ups with them when they went to Manila."

Things will now be different as they enter into the knockout rounds, with Chinese-Taipei as their quarterfinal opponent at 110pm. The team managed to extend China into overtime during pool play, falling short, 9-11, after leading by 8-6 late.

They did manage to earn their spot into the next round with an 18-8 victory over hosts Singapore.

Solano shares about that matchup, "As we prepare for Chinese Taipei, we told the ladies to just stick to what we are doing, the process of what we are doing. We’re going to have some adjustments kaya non-stop scouting kami ng mga coaches."

A chance to play two more games beckons for the winner of the quarterfinals matchup, with the winner of the matchup between Japan and New Zealand waiting in the wings later in the day.

Matches can be streamed through the FIBA 3x3 YouTube account, as well as through Pilipinas Live.

FEU extends winning run to six in UAAP Football

c/o UAAP

Far Eastern University rode on the heroics of Sherwin Basindanan to secure the win against Ateneo de Manila University in the UAAP Season 86 Men's Football Tournament on Sunday night at the UP Diliman Football Stadium.

The veteran winger converted a header five minutes into second half injury time to emerge as winners, bucking a personnel disadvantage in the second half to claim all three points.

In reflecting about the victory, head coach Albert Besa shares, "It came at a crucial time; he’s been very hungry for this goal and it showed. The last one was actually a team goal, it was great that he was able to convert, and it was a glancing header — one of the hardest things to do."

He adds, "The boys had a great performance and we were able to come out with a win. There was a little mishap and we were down ten men but they really showed the attitude that they didn’t want to lose or even lose so they went all out."

The defending champions went ahead first, as Karl Absalon scored his fourth goal of the season after 36 minutes. But the happiness was short-lived as Khent Velasquez's foul just before halftime warranted a straight red card.

Ateneo would eventually find an equalizer in the 77th minute, as Kofi Agyei scored his seventh goal of the season.

But FEU found a way to steal all three points thanks to Basindanan's clutch performance, extending their winning streak to six matches and a +11 goal difference. They will be back in action on April 11, as they face Adamson at 4pm at the same venue.

Ateneo remains in third place with fourteen points, but their goal difference drops to +8 due to their second defeat of the campaign. They resume action at the same date against the University of Santo Tomas at 6pm.

UST nips La Salle in UAAP Men's Football

c/o UAAP

University of Santo Tomas kicked off its second round campaign in the UAAP Season 86 Men's Football Tournament with a 2-1 victory over La Salle on Sunday at the UP Diliman Football Stadium.

The Golden Booters scored in each half to secure the victory over the Green Booters, with Justine Marquez scored the opening goal in the 44th minute.

Kyler Escobar then doubled the advantage in the 69th minute, thanks to a long diagonal assist from Archie Beluga.

La Salle managed to cut the deficit to a single goal after Paolo Go converted a free kick into a goal in the 81st minute, but they were never able to find the equalizer.

The closest that they could muster was during injury time, but Christian Penalosa's free kick attempt went in vain.

Head coach Marjo Allado shared afterwards, "Yung first game namin sa UAAP is must win. If La Salle kase manalo maiiwan kami so sa start nami ng first round diba talo so gusto namin umpisahan na ung second round na manalo ung team namin."

He adds, "Kahit mga 1st year rookies’ kayo pero sa abilities ninyo kaya nyo ung mga team eh, it’s a matter of confidence. Good game for us, maganda siya kase La Salle pa tinalo. Ung performance nila nag improve from the first round."

The victory puts UST into fourth place with ten points and a +3 goal difference, dropping their victims to fifth with nine points and a negligible GD.

Both teams will be back in action when the league resumes play after the Holy Week break at the UP Diliman Football Stadium on April 4.

UST faces UE at 4pm, followed by DLSU against Adamson at 6pm.