THE UST Tiger Shuttlers dropped their bronze medal match after falling to the UP Fighting Maroons, 3-0, in the UAAP Season 86 men’s badminton tournament.
This is the second consecutive year that the Tiger Shuttlers finished in fourth place. They also lost to the Fighting Maroons during the previous season.
The UST failed to gain momentum as UP dominated the first serve to the final point at the Centro Atletico Badminton Center on Sunday, Nov 12.
In the first singles game, Kervin Llanes of UP established an early 4-0 lead against Sean Dela Cruz of UST. Despite a mid-game rally by Dela Cruz, Llanes responded with a four-point run to secure the first set, 21-14.
Llanes drew the first blood in the second set, securing a 10-point lead, 21-11.
UP did not falter as UST continued to stumble in its next two matches.
UP’s Jewel Albo smashed UST’s team captain Llenox Culiao in the second set of the singles game. Albo amassed a 12-point lead in the first set, 21-9, and a nine-point advantage in the second set, 21-12.
An early lead was established by Tiger Shuttlers Munir Bartolome and Kyle Basilio during the final men’s doubles game. But Fighting Maroons Kervin Llanes and Jewel Albo responded with a four-to-zero run and secured the first set, 21-17.
UP remained ahead of UST in the second set to seal the podium finish, 21-13.
UST Tiger Shuttlers coach Charlie Medina said the team would exert more effort in their coming trainings to achieve better results in their next tournaments.
“I did not see the ‘Tiger spirit’ in the men… But I believe, one step at a time, we will reach the podium finish,” Medina said in an interview with The Flame. F – Mc Neil Zyh Serrano
