UST registers first win with six-goal rout of Ateneo
By Ernest Martin Tuazon
The UST Junior Golden Booters (1–2) tallied their first win in the UAAP Season 85 high school boys football tournament with a 6–1 demolition of the Ateneo Blue Eagles, Sunday afternoon, at the UP Diliman Football Pitch.
UST’s Dominic Tom and Kent John Bacolocos opened the scoring punch of the Junior Golden Booters with goals at the seventh and 21st-minute mark of the first half to take an early 2–0 lead.
However, Ateneo immediately retaliated at the 25th minute with a score by James Del Valle. This was the lone goal made from the Katipunan-based squad.
The Junior Golden Booters added on to the Blue Eagles’ woes as two late conversions by Rodrigo Mariñas and Kristien Elopre at the 43rd and 45th+2 minute, 4–1, to close the first half of play.
Right out the dugout after halftime, Mariñas and Tom continued their scoring spree as they added two goals to the University’s tally at the 47th and 55th-minute mark of the second half, 6–1.
Ateneo was unable to score in the final half of play with the Junior Golden Booters’ full-length defense, something UST failed to do after allowing a goal in the 73rd minute in their come-from-behind loss against the FEU Baby Tamaraws last Sunday, Jan. 27.
With both teams playing pesky defense in a frenetic encounter, three yellow cards were given across both teams in the 70th minute of the match; two to UST’s team captain Byron Abela and Roland Ozoa, and one to Ateneo’s Del Valle.
With the victory, the University still sits in third place in the standings with three points behind DLSZ’s six and FEU’s nine markers.
As of writing, the league has yet to announce the schedule of the next matches in the four-team high school boys football tournament.
