By Gabrielle Amber Bellosillo
Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Booters sustained momentum against the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Lady Booters, securing a 5-1 win in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 89 women’s football tournament earlier today, October 17, at the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman Football Pitch in Quezon City.
Green-and-gold forward Judie Arevalo swiftly made an early statement on the pitch, putting FEU on the front foot with a 1-0 advantage.
The Morayta-based squad then continued to camp out UST’s defense as midfielder Marienell Cristobal converted a penalty kick in the 32nd minute, extending FEU’s lead to 2-0 after a foul on Jelan Pabuaya.
Heading into halftime, Tamaraw forward Pabuaya capped off a 3-0 goal in the 39th minute by finishing an attacking play, widening the opponent’s deficit.
Green-and-gold goalie Blaine Marie Barredo was forced into action in the 66th minute when UST’s Rica Gerona pounced on an aggressive push to bring the tally to 3-1.
Pushing further, Tamaraw midfielder Kyza Colina’s quick response in the 69th minute restored the three-goal cushion for the green-and-gold squad, 4-1.
Midfielder Iries De la Cruz put the game out of reach with a stoppage-time strike in the 90th minute, capping a dominant 5-1 win against UST.
In an interview with FEU Advocate, FEU Lady Booters assistant coach Fitch Arboleda expressed optimism about the match’s result.
“So luckily, we got three goals in the first half, tapos medyo nag-lesser lang ng kaunti sa second half, although maraming attempts, pero I think maganda naman [‘yung] result ng game (So luckily, we got three goals in the first half, and then it got lesser in the second half, although there were a lot of attempts, but I think the result of the game is good),” he noted.
Moreover, the Morayta-based assistant coach emphasized their preparedness to play amid pressure.
“I think ‘yung maganda talaga sa amin is we are ready to play every match. [Tapos] ‘yung gusto talaga namin makuha this season, of course, ‘yung championship; but before that, ‘yung gusto namin makuha is ‘yung ma-sweep ‘yung rounds para at least, diretso na nang finals (I think what's really good for us is we are ready to play every match. So, what we really want to get this season, of course, is the championship, but before that, what we want to get is to sweep the rounds so that we can go straight to the finals),” the assistant coach said.
FEU still sits on a clean 7-0 win-loss streak, which they look to sustain in their next match against UP on Wednesday, October 21, at the same pitch.
(Photo by Prince Espela/FEU Advocate)