Maroons in UAAP badminton semis

UNIVERSITY of the Philippines nipped Ateneo, 3- 2, to clinch a Final Four slot yesterday in the UAAP Season 80 badminton tournament.

The pairs of CK Clemente and JM Bernardo, and Betong Pineda and Paul Gonzales completed a sweep of doubles, while Bernardo provided the lone singles victory for the Fighting Maroons to improve at 4- 1 at the Rizal UP joined defending champion National University, a 4- 1 winner over De La Salle, in the Final Four.

The Bulldogs stretched their perfect run to five and moved within a win of securing an outright championship berth.

NU shoots for the slot in the best-ofthree Finals against also-ran University of the East in the final day of eliminations at 8 a.m. on Thursday at the same Malate venue.

The Blue Eagles and the Green Archers dropped to 3-2 card in joint third.

University of Santo Tomas, meanwhile, keep its semifinals hopes alive with a 5-0 shutout win over Adamson University for a 2-3 card, stalling Ateneo and La Salle’s march to the semis.

In the women’s division Saturday, titleholder UP overcame Ateneo, 3- 2, to secure the first Final Four berth with a 4- 0 record.

La Salle overpowered UE, 5- 0, while NU beat Adamson University, 4- 1, to force a three- way tie with Ateneo in second spot at 3- 1.

Meanwhile, UE stretched its winning run to four after a season-opening loss to titleholder National University with a 62-44 conquest of Adamson University on Sunday in women’s basketball.

Love Sto. Domingo came through with an all-around effort of 21 points, 14 rebounds, seven steals and six assists, while Christine Cortezano (13 points, 13 boards) and Bienca Ramos (10 points, 10 rebounds) also produced double-digit production for the Lady Warriors to solidify their hold of third spot.