THE UST Male Tennisters secured their fourth straight finals berth after staging a gritty 3-2 comeback win over last year’s champions NU Bulldogs in a do-or-die UAAP Season 88 men’s tennis semifinals on Sunday, March 22, at the Colegio San Agustin-Bulacan Tennis Court.
After splitting their previous meetings, the Male Tennisters delivered when it mattered most, dethroning NU to set up a best-of-three finale against the top-ranked UP Fighting Maroons on Wednesday, March 25, at the same venue.
The UST tandem of Al-Zayeed Baid and Steven Sonsona stayed steady in the clutch, grinding out a 7–5, 6–3 victory over Angil Balaoing and Isaac Lim in the second doubles to claim the victory.
However, it was NU who came out firing in the do-or-die, as Alexis Acabo dominated Evan Bacalso, 6–4, 6–0, in the third singles match to take an early 1-0 edge.
Andrei Padao then pushed the Bulldogs to the brink of victory after taking down Ericjay Tangub in the first singles, 6–2, 6–4.
Facing elimination, UST mounted a comeback behind Christopher Sonsona, who kept their campaign alive with a 6–2, 6–4 win over Jules Lazaro in the second singles match.
The momentum carried over to the doubles, where the UST pair of Richard Bautista and Nash Agustines whipped Christian Padilla and Miguel Vicencio in the first doubles match, 6–0, 6–4, forcing a decider.
NU, meanwhile, slipped to a bronze-medal finish. F
