The De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Shuttlers notched their second straight victory of the UAAP Women’s Badminton Tournament as they dispatched the National University (NU) Lady Bulldogs, 4–1, Sunday afternoon at the Rizal Memorial Badminton Hall.
La Salle’s Ariane Rivera upended National U’s Amica Du-ay in the first singles match. Rivera blew past Du-ay at the start of the first game and went to the break first, 11–3. The Lasallian stayed on the offensive and delivered numerous blows that earned her the set 21–13. Duay quickly bounced back in the following frame and led 7–11. After the break, Rivera mounted an 8–0 charge to steal the lead. From there, the La Salle sophomore proved to be too much for her NU counterpart as Rivera took the game, 21–16.
Starting on a similar note as the previous singles match, Anghela Sevilla rose to an 11–3 advantage into the first game break against Jiselle Capillo. DLSU continued to surge after the interval and eventually finished the first frame, 21–9. Capillo started out strong in the second game and notched an early lead. Sevilla then pulled a comeback to lead at the break, 11–10. Sevilla maintained the lead despite numerous charges by Capillo and ended the match, 21–18.
DLSU Team Captain Kristelle Salatan and Alyssa Leonardo clinched the win for the Lady Archers as they upended Du-ay and Loverly Magallano in two sets in the first doubles match. Salatan and Leonardo surged ahead and rallied past their counterparts in the first set, 21–8. The second game was a tight battle as the Sampaloc-based tandem and the Taft-based duo went toe-to-toe. Du-ay and Magallano wrestled the lead from the Lasallians at the tailend of the frame to tie the match, 21–19. The Lady Bulldogs continued their momentum into the deciding game to take an early lead. Salatan and Leonardo then slowly snatched the game and eventually won the match and the tie, 21–11.
With the tie already in the bag, Aires Montilla and Sevilla dispatched Capillo and Marinel Diansay in 25 minutes. The women in green and white overwhelmed the duo of Capillo and Diansay to quickly grab the first game, 21–9. The second set, however, was not as easy for Montilla and Sevilla as the Lady Bulldogs led going into the interval of the second game, 11-6. Unfazed by their early slump, the duo of Sevilla and Montilla launched a comeback trail that led to their eventual 21-17 victory.
Veteran Magallano saved the Lady Bulldogs from a complete sweep in the final singles match when she stood her ground against Lindsay Tercias. Magallano created a lead in the first game and never looked back to end the frame at 21–17. In the following frame, Tercias and Magallano when on a see-saw battle before the Lasallian took the lead at 17–16. The Nationalian took over from there and took the game and the final match of the day on a similar 21–17 score line.
The Green Lady Shuttlers will face last season’s champions University of the Philippines Lady Maroons on Wednesday, September 23. The Lady Bulldogs on the other hand will try to get back on the right track against contenders University of Santo Tomas Tigresses.
