The UP Fighting Maroons celebrate after scoring against NU in the UAAP Season 89 women's football tournament, October 3, 2026 at the UP Diliman Football Stadium. UAAP Media
MANILA — University of the Philippines secured its first win of the UAAP Season 89 women's football tournament after blanking National University, 5-0, on Saturday at the UP Diliman Football Stadium.
Erissa Rivas and Bem Aranas each scored twice, with Rivas setting the tone by slotting home a right-footed strike just five minutes into the match. She completed her brace in the 27th minute with another clinical finish.
Aranas, meanwhile, made an emphatic return from a one-match suspension following her red card against Far Eastern University last Saturday, scoring in the 11th and 33rd minutes to further compound NU's early struggles.
Hannah Muros then completed the rout for the Fighting Maroons in the 54th minute.
"Very happy for the girls," said coach Anto Gonzales. "They really started very sharp and aggressive. They knew they played well. They were very determined to really get their first win. So very happy for them."
Gonzales was especially pleased to see the Fighting Maroons finish their chances, after scoring just one goal in their first three matches of the season.
"You know, it's really the desire to score which we showed; we had some really good goals, and we were very aggressive playing the ball forward," said the coach.
Both teams return to the same venue on Wednesday to close out their first-round schedules. UP faces the University of Santo Tomas at 2:00 p.m., while NU takes on Ateneo de Manila University at 4:30 p.m.