MANILA — University of the Philippines kept its championship hopes alive after defeating University of Santo Tomas, 3-2, in Game 2 of the UAAP Season 88 men’s tennis finals on Saturday at Colegio San Agustin in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan.
The hard-fought win forced a deciding Game 3, which will determine the champion on Sunday at 7:30 a.m.
The Fighting Maroons clinched the match through the doubles pair of Carl Tan and Andrei Jarata, who delivered a convincing 7-5, 6-1 victory against UST’s Steven Sonsona and Al-Zayeed Baid.
Tan credited their improved performance to the team’s determination to bounce back after a disappointing start to the series.
“Our coach reminded us that we needed to step up because in Game 1 we didn’t really play our best,” Tan said. “We stayed focused and just concentrated on our own match.”
UST initially appeared on track to secure the championship after taking the first two matches of the day. Christopher Sonsona overwhelmed Heinz Carbonilla, 6-0, 6-2, while Ericjay Tangub defeated Lance Fernandez, 7-6(2), 6-0.
UP responded with back-to-back wins to stay in contention. Loucas Fernandez rallied from a set down to beat Evan Bacalso, 0-6, 6-4, 6-2.
The doubles team of Miguel Iglupas and Raymund Goco then evened the scoreline after escaping with a dramatic 4-6, 6-2, 11-9 win over Richard Bautista and Nash Agustines.
Iglupas said belief played a key role in their comeback, especially after falling behind late in the deciding set.
“We were trailing 2-7 and it was a tough situation,” he said. “I just encouraged my partner to keep fighting and trusted that we could still pull it off.”
UST, which is chasing its 17th men’s tennis crown, dominated Game 1 with a 3-0 sweep before UP forced the finals series to a deciding match.
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