Team badminton can be compared to chess for the coaches involved. Predicting the opponent’s line-up and gambling on probability are the factors each coach takes into account minutes before submitting their line-ups.
Just like in their round match-up loss against the Ateneo Lady Shuttlers, Coach Noel Cajefe designated UST star shuttler Patricia Barredo as closer for this do-or-die series against the Lady Tamaraws. It was a risky move that, unfortunately, did not pay-off. The solid quartet of Michal Dei Duquilla, Thea Marie Pomar, Hannah Tudtud and Maridel Rivera staved-off elimination in just 4 matches to advance to the Final Four of this year’s UAAP Women’s Badminton Tournament.
Women’s Singles Match 1: Michal Dei Duquilla (FEU) def. Steffie Denise Aquino (UST); 2:1
UST 0 – 1 FEU
Steffie Aquino opened the series for the Golden Shuttlers against Michal Duquilla. The 1st set of this match-up was a close affair with the match being tied 6 times. With the game tied at 16-all, the agile Michal Duquilla would try to break-away in to give her an 18-16. Aquino would take advantage of a service error from Duquilla to storm back with a 4-point rally to be 1-point shy of taking the game. Duquilla would score after an excellent return to try to extend the game. However, an errand service gave Aquino the match 21-19.
After the court switch, Michal Duquilla would blitz to a 13-4 lead in the 2nd set. The lead would balloon to 19-9 later on. Duquilla would tire Aquino by mixing lobs and drops before setting up for a hard return. Duquilla would tie things up by winning the game 21-13.
Duquilla would turn the tides in favor and never give Aquino even a hint of momentum in the deciding set for this match. Duquilla would jump to an early 8-2 lead. The lead would further extend to 18-8 before going for the kill with a smash to take the game and the match 21-9.
Aggregate Score: Duquilla 61 – Aquino 43
Total Match Time: 48 mins
Women’s Singles Match 2: Thea Marie Pomar (FEU) def. Airish Ann Macalino (UST); 2:0
UST 0 – 2 FEU
From the start of the match and right to the very end, Thea Pomar just had one pace. She never let-up and had no dead time in blowing-out the rookie Airish Macalino in 2 sets. Pomar would start the game quick and furious to storm with an early 11-4 lead. The rookie from Espana would make a quick rally after the break to be only down a solitary point 10-11. The FEU lady shuttler would halt any momentum Macalino gains by only giving-up 6 points, mostly duty to her errors, in winning the 1st game 21-16.
The 2nd game would start with an aggressive Airish Macalino take an early 7-2 lead. Thea Pomar would loosen up and slowly set the pace of the game once more. She would cut the Macalino lead to just 1, 7-8 before breaking the game wide open with a series of excellent drops. She would blitz to a 12-2 rally to give her a huge 19-10 lead. She would win the game 21-12 with a smash that just bounced off the racket of Macalino.
Aggregate Score: Pomar 42 – Macalino 28
Total Match Time: 30 mins
Women’s Doubles Match 1: Steffie Denise Aquino and Ana Patricia Barredo (UST) def. Thea Marie Pomar and Hannah Tudtud (FEU); 2:0
UST 1 – 0 FEU
The tandem of Aquino and Barredo is one of the top doubles teams this season in the Women’s division of the UAAP. The lanky duo has a tall task in front of them. Defeating the duo of Pomar and Tudtud would be step 1 of a 3 step process to bounce back and punch a ticket to the playoffs.
Patricia Barredo would lead her team to a 21-15 routing to give her team a 1-0 lead. The 2nd game was a slobber-knocker. Thea Pomar would give her team an early 9-4 lead over the heralded pair from Espana. The lead would jump to 11-6 via two excellent returns by Hannah Tudtud before the 11th minute break. Patricia Barredo and Steffie Aquino would slowly chip into the FEU lead to tie things up at 16-all. The two tandems would go point-for-point for the next couple of minutes. With the FEU leading 19-18, a Tudtud return was initially deemed in by the umpire. However, the side judge, with a clearer view of where the shuttlecock landed, would change the call and score the point to the Golden Shuttlers to the game. After that lucky break, Steffie Aquino would seal the game with two excellent drops to give win the set 21-19.
Aggregate Score: Aquino and Barredo 42 – Tudtud and Pomar 34
Total Match Time: 36 mins
Women’s Doubles Match 2: Michal Dei Duquila and Maridel Rivera (FEU) def. Ma. Kristine Gaspar and Ma. Victoria Vizmonte (UST); 2:0
UST 1 – 3 FEU (FEU wins)
The tandem of Gaspar and Vizmonte would carry the weight of the UST community on their shoulders in their match-up against Duquila and Rivera. With a win, the gamble of Coach Cajefe would have paid-off with Hannah Tudtud facing the unbeaten Patricia Barredo in a deciding final match.
The 1st game would see Gaspar lead her team to an early 9-6 lead over Duquila and Rivera. The UST lead would extend to 14-9. It was an error-filled start for the FEU pair. They would recover midway to eventually tie the game at 17-all. Both pairs would exchange excellent returns to extend the game into the advantage points. The athletic Michel Duquilla would make a push in scoring two successive backhanded returns to steal the 1st set from the Golden Shuttlers 22-20.
The 2nd set would again start with the two tandems go on short rallies. Gaspar and the lanky Vizmonte would be down 11-9 before the break. During the break, Patricia Barredo would go down from the bleachers to cheer her team on staying in court 5. The tandem of Duquila and Rivera would gain a 20-14 lead. A teary Patricia Barredo would lie down onto the court, hoping for a miracle run by her teammates. Duquila and Rivera would have a hard time closing-out the pair from UST. Gaspar would burst with a 5 point rally, coming from amazing drops and errand returns. With the UST crowd hoping for a miracle, Duquila would execute a low drop that Vizmonte and Gaspar failed to return to give FEU the game win 21-19 and the match.
Aggregate Score: Duquila and Rivera 43 – Gaspar and Vizmonte 39
Total Match Time: 40 mins
The gamble of Coach Cajefe did not pay-off this time. In an interview, Coach Cajefe said that this was a team building experience and the team would be intact for next year. Coach would then lead the team in prayer and thanked his players for a wonderful season.
The Far Eastern University Lady Tamaraws would now advance to the next phase of the knock-out stage to face the winner of the Ateneo-DLSU game at the other court.
