Unstoppable Ilas leads CE Knights to breathtaking three-peat win in men’s table tennis finale

Every smash echoed through Gusaling Emilio Ejercito (GEE) as Lorenzo Miguel Ilas of the College of Engineering (CE) Knights stepped onto the table tennis court once again, fixed on securing a third consecutive men’s championship at the PLM Intramurals 2025 last November 6.

The championship match was a best-of-three game against a familiar rival, Marlon Bryant Tobias of the College of Education (CED) Titans, in a highly anticipated rematch of last year’s finals, where Ilas also gained the victory.

The first game was a rollercoaster shift in momentum, with Ilas quickly taking an early lead by winning the first set with an 11–5 score.

Tobias quickly answered back with sharp returns to steal the second and third sets (13–11, 11–7), momentarily snatching command.

Ilas refused to back down, regaining composure and unleashing his trademark fast smashes to dominate the fourth set, 11–3, before sealing the fifth, 11–7, giving the Knights the upper hand.

The second game mirrored the same fierce intensity. Tobias opened strong with an 11–9 win in the first set, yet was immediately countered by Ilas’ confident strokes, claiming the next two sets 11–6 and 11–9 respectively.

The Titans roared back with a blistering 11–3 surge in the fourth set, dragging the duel into a winner-takes-all fifth.

In the final stretch, both players unleashed nerve-shredding rallies that had the crowd erupting at every exchange, but despite the Titans’ furious comeback, Ilas refused to break—stealing his composure and outlasting Tobias in a 12–10 score to slam the door shut and seize the championship.

“Ngayon, mas maganda ‘yung naging performance niya (Marlon Tobias) actually, kasi dalawang beses kami nag five sets tapos dikit pa, so ayun, maganda yung experience, fulfilling, ‘yun ‘yung word.” Ilas stated after the match.

With this victory, Ilas cements his status as a three-time consecutive table tennis champion, reaffirming the CE Knights’ dominance in the sport. His consistency and focus have once again been proven.

Meanwhile, in the battle for third place, the College of Architecture and Sustainable Built Environments (CASBE) Owls swept the College of Information Systems and Technology Management (CISTM) Pythons in a straight-set victory to clinch the bronze and complete the podium.