By Angel Joyce C. Basa

Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraw Booter Judie Arevalo orchestrated a clutch goal to conclude their round one rump against De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Booters with a 1-1 draw in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87 women's football tourney earlier tonight, October 30, at the University of the Philippines Diliman Football Pitch in Quezon City.

The Season 86 Rookie of the Year came in handy during the second half of the match and took advantage of DLSU’s tormented defense for a goal in the 78th minute.

Before the successful goal, the Morayta-based team had a hard time finishing their plays to one-up the Taft squad. FEU senior Carmela Altiche spearheaded the attack line with two close attempts early on.

In an interview with FEU Advocate, Altiche emphasized the team’s unsuccessful efforts due to shortcomings on their finishing which they look to improve upon in the second round.

“I think ‘yun po talaga ‘yung problem namin from the start. Siguro sa next round, ‘yun po ‘yung [finishing] iwo-work out po namin, and, especially me, kasi marami rin akong attempts na na-miss (I think that really is our problem from the start. I guess in the next round, the finishing is what we will work on, especially me, since I missed a lot of attempts),” the senior player stated.

DLSU answered back with a close strike courtesy of Alisha Del Campo in the 32nd minute, followed by two free kicks but were still unable to secure a goal, ending the first half at 0-0.

In the second half, the green kit team scored a successful goal from a Del Campo header at the 68-minute mark.

The Lady Tams countered with Arevalo’s goal which resulted in a draw to close the first round of the tournament.

FEU’s Arevalo shared that she considers her season’s first goal as a “good goal” during a post-game interview.

“Sa goal ko naman po is a good goal kasi first time [this season and] first time ko nagawa ‘yung heading na goal dito sa season ngayon (My goal was a good goal because it's my first time this season and first time to do a heading goal this season),” she said.

The final result marked the Lady Tamaraw Booters’ first draw since Season 85, which was during their round two closer against the same opponent.

With a 3-1-0 win-draw-loss record for the green-and-gold reps, the squad remains at the number one spot and is looking to revive their win streak in the second round of the tournament occurring in November.

(Photo by Kayla Babista/FEU Advocate)