James Sibla, Argos Alingalan, and Luke Aguilar each scored twice as De La Salle University opened the second round of the UAAP Season 89 Collegiate Men’s Football Tournament in dominant fashion, routing University of the East, 8-0, on Thursday at the University of the Philippines Diliman Football Stadium.
Sibla opened the scoring with a vicious close-range finish off a low pass from Marlou Gaverza in the fourth minute before doubling his tally in the 58th minute.
Alingalan also found the back of the net in both halves, scoring the Green Booters’ second goal in the 15th minute before opening the second-half scoring in the 49th minute.
Aguilar, who came on as a substitute in the second half, added two goals in the span of three minutes, striking in the 74th and 76th minutes to put the finishing touches on La Salle’s dominant performance.
Joaquin Collo and Uriel Dalapo also got on the scoresheet, finding the net in the 25th and 44th minutes, respectively.
(C) UAAP Season 89 Media Team
“For us, the most important thing is the three points,” said head coach Richard Leyble, reflecting on the victory compared to La Salle’s 2-0 win over the same UE squad in the first round.
“No matter what the score is, basta sa amin lang, as much as possible kung kaya mag-score, we will score. But the most important thing that we will get is the three points in the win.”
The Green Booters remain in second place with 14 points, picking up their first victory in four matches while improving their goal difference to plus-13.
La Salle will have a bye on Sunday before returning to action against University of Santo Tomas on November 12 at 2 p.m., still at the Diliman venue.
(C) UAAP Season 89 Media Team
On the other side, the Red Warriors struggled to create scoring opportunities, with most of their promising chances falling to Keith Hermoso.
The fourth-year senior collected a well-timed through ball early in the match but was caught offside. He later took a corner kick in first-half stoppage time, but his delivery went straight to La Salle goalkeeper Iñigo Castro. Hermoso had another opportunity to score a consolation goal late in the match, but his attempt sailed well over the crossbar.
UE remains winless after seven matches and will look to finally break through when it faces UST on Sunday at 4:30 p.m.
