UP was dealt their second loss by Ateneo

University of the Philippines faltered in their third match of the season in a game versus their Katipunan neighbors, Ateneo de Manila University, 0-2, in the UAAP Season 87 Men’s Football Tournament last October 10, Thursday, at the UP Diliman Football Stadium, Quezon City.

After coming in hot from their 3-0 win over Adamson University last October 3, the Maroons were not able to keep up as they failed to penetrate the Eagles’ defensive power.

Early on in the match, State U faced a hitch when Florenz Tacardon suffered an injury on his left foot due to a bad fall at the 9th minute mark after coming into contact with ADMU’s Marcus Arias. He was seen using crutches on the sidelines and was not able to return on the field afterwards.

Ateneo’s Dov Cariño went straight for the net in the 31st minute of the match when UP’s goalkeeper Alfonso Gonzalez’s hesitation caused him to slip and miss the ball.

10 minutes later, State U had the golden opportunity to level with the Blue and White with a strong diagonal kick by Ramil Bation which was then headed by Joseph Garces but was unfortunately swiftly blocked by ADMU’s goalkeeper Artuz Cezar.

Much to UP’s dismay, Cariño once again scored a goal by targeting the bottom left corner of the net in the 87th minute after Gonzalez leaped in and failed to protect Diliman’s net.

After 90 minutes of gameplay and an added six minutes of stoppage time, the Fighting Maroons were unsuccessful in continuing their winning ways.

After three matches, the Maroons are now in fifth place with three points with a 0 goal difference. On the contrary, the Eagles are on top of the rankings after four matches with 12 points and a +8 goal difference.

The UP Fighting Maroons will look to come back on the winning column on Sunday, October 13, 4:00 PM at the UP Diliman Football Stadium in a match-up with the UE Red Warriors.

Meanwhile, the Ateneo Blue Eagles have a week to enjoy their win before facing the UST Growling Tigers on October 20, 4:00 PM, at the UP Diliman Football Stadium.

This UP Fighting Maroons Club post is in partnership with Jiang Nan Hotpot.