THE Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu ended its elimination round campaign on a strong note to bag a semis seat in the Boys 12 Division of the AboitizLand Football Cup at the University of Cebu-METC field on Jan. 11, 2020.

SHS-Ateneo routed the University of San Jose-Recoletos Basak, 10-0, to finish with a 4-1 record good for second place in Group B. The win also prevented a tie with the surging Cebu Sherilin Plastics, which beat Makoto FC, 2-0, for its third win of the season. Mathew Labojo scored both goals for Cebu Sherilin, which finished third in the eliminations.

In Group A, DBTC C defeated Sheba United FC, 4-2, to close out its campaign with six points along with Giuseppe FC and Paref Springdale. DBTC A secured the top spot in the Group with 12 points, while the second spot will be determined through goal difference. Group A has five teams, while Group B has six teams this season.

In the semifinals Group A No. 1 DBTC A, which won all four games, will take on Ateneo de Cebu, while Group B No. 1 DBTC B, also undefeated in five games, will take on the No. 2 in Group A.

In the Boys 18 Division, DBTC A tallied its second straight win after a 9-0 rout of SMS Boystown. Charles Unabia had four goals, CJ Noel Songalia had two, while Louis Gabriel Roxas, Josh Rupert Asignar and Uriel Villacarlos had one each. DBTC A now leads the group at six points, one win ahead of Ateneo and Boystown. Giuseppe is last after losing all three matches.

In Group B, DBTC B also took a share of the top spot after beating the University of San Carlos, 5-3. Sirech Ethan Nimenzo gave DBTC B the lead in the fifth and added a second in the 15th before USC got one back courtesy of Ezekiel Diola in the 34th. USC got on level terms three minutes before half time, but Nimenzo completed his hat trick just a minute into the second half for a 3-2 lead.

Andres Custado then took over and got the insurance goal in the 50th before adding another in the 74th. USC got another goal in the 80th but it was too late to catch up as it suffered its second straight loss. (ML WITH PR)