The back-to-back champion Business and Management (B&M) Vipers and defending four-peat champion Accountancy (ACC) Griffins ended their seasons in style after once again clawing both singles and doubles categories in Palarong Atenista 2025 Table Tennis Men’s Tournament.  

In the doubles category, B&M Vipers’ John David Grapa and Roland Joseph Sueno started strong with an 11-2 win over ACC Griffins’ Celwin Alidon and Errol Tampepe in the first game, but the Griffins didn’t back down and responded with an 11-5 win in the second game to level the match.

B&M Vipers regained control in the third game with 11-6, only for ACC Griffins to snatch the fourth game with a score of 11-9.  

In the decisive final round, B&M Vipers staged an astonishing comeback, launching a critical five-point run to swing the momentum in their way, closing out the match 11-7 to clinch the title.

B&M Vipers’ Grapa reflected on the pressure they faced as back-to-back champions from last year, which fueled their determination to deliver once again.

“What makes this journey more challenging… think the expectations from us because knowing that we are the defending champions in this table tennis, Palaro from last year, and having expectations from other people,” Grapa stated. 

In the singles finals, ACC Griffins’ Mark Mobida dominated the first two games with identical 11-7 scores. 

However, the third game saw a shift of momentum for both players as B&M Vipers Karlo Tan Du fought tooth and nail to mount a comeback. 

In the end, Tan Du succumbed to Mobida, closing out the game 12-10 and completing a 3-0 sweep to obtain ACC’s fourth consecutive championship title.

Mobida highlighted that his pre-match preparations involved solo practice sessions during his free time and observing his opponent’s movements to guide his in-game decisions.

“My techniques were just. Observing. observing my opponents and apply it in the real [game].” 

The B&M Vipers and the School of Engineering and Architecture earned the other two spots in the podium for the singles category, bagging silver and bronze, respectively; while the ACC Griffins went in with silver and the Social Sciences Dragons with bronze in the doubles category.  

The championship matches of table tennis men were held in 6F Martin Hall, Ateneo de Davao University, on September 28.