Ahead of their final rematch, Far Eastern University-Diliman and University of Santo Tomas secured dominant victories against De La Salle Zobel and Ateneo de Manila University, respectively, in the UAAP Season 87 High School Boys’ Football Tournament, Saturday at the UP Diliman Football Stadium.
FEU-D opened the day with a commanding 3-0 win over La Salle, while UST followed with an emphatic 5-2 triumph against Ateneo.
Meanwhile, in a clash between guest teams, PAREF Southridge clinched its first-ever UAAP victory by routing Claret School of Quezon City 4-0 in front of a packed crowd, split between the supporters of both schools.
Rookie forward Jerriemy Biton delivered a brace to power the Baby Tamaraws to their fourth straight win and increase his personal tally to five goals in just four matches.
“Sobrang saya ko kasi si Biton is a really special striker for us,” said FEU-D coach Jake Morallo after the match. “Every moment sa game, especially sa attacking side, nandun siya. He has the right timing and proper positioning. He’s a very, very special player.”
Unlike in their previous match against Ateneo—where FEU-D struggled to break the deadlock before halftime—Biton wasted no time putting his team ahead. His long-range attempt in the 11th minute was mishandled by La Salle goalkeeper Jacob Salvante, giving FEU-D an early lead. He doubled the advantage in the 39th minute with a swift counterattack.
La Salle’s struggles worsened in the second half when defender Armand Lugod was sent off in the 69th minute for denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity. FEU-D sealed the victory in stoppage time as Reynaldo Martinez found the back of the net in the 90+3rd minute.
“Siguro, this will be a good game against UST,” Morallo added, looking ahead to their next match. “Unang-una, I think sila wala ring talo no? And even from last year, they’re really hungry makuha tong kampeonato, same as sa amin. I think sa game na ito, bibigyan namin sila ng magandang laban.”
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
Like Biton, Mark Visitacion netted a brace to lead UST to a dominant win over Ateneo.
Visitacion struck twice in the first half, scoring in the 21st and 35th minutes to give UST a comfortable two-goal cushion at halftime.
Joshua Balliner seemingly put the game beyond reach with a goal in the 51st minute, but Ateneo’s James Del Valle responded with a stunning free kick in the 65th minute to make it 3-1.
River Solis restored UST’s three-goal lead in the 75th minute, only for Ateneo to pull one back through an 80th-minute penalty by Andres Dumlao.
However, UST substitute striker Lucky Aque ensured all three points with an 82nd-minute strike.
“Happy ako sa performance ng boys pero (pagdating) sa expectations namin, may kailangan pa i-meet at kaya pa ng boys gumaling. Yun yung hinihintay namin so patient kami game-by-game,” said UST assistant coach David Basa. “Nag-pe-prepare kami for the last game in the first round. Yung ginagawa naman sa players is to familiarize kung paano maglaro ang FEU at kung paano namin sila tatapatan sa Saturday.”
The Baby Tamaraws solidified their hold on first place with 12 points, while the Junior Golden Booters climbed to solo second with 10 points.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
On the other hand, Francis Poticano opened the scoring for the Admirals in the 30th minute with a tap-in and completed the rout in stoppage time with a goal in the 90+2nd minute.
Ramil Fraga extended the lead with a header in the 37th minute, while Joziah Rance added his name to the scoresheet in the 58th minute.
“We thank God for today and for giving us the victory,” said Southridge’s Ghanian coach Sam Bonney. “I think we prepared very well. If you watched our last two games, we came very close with FEU and La Salle Zobel, so I think the momentum is there, and we were able to get the victory today.”
With this result, Southridge moved up to fourth place, edging Ateneo due to a superior goal difference of -1 compared to Ateneo’s -4.
Meanwhile, Claret remains at the bottom of the standings with zero points.
