Ateneans enjoy the hour, share the joy

MANILA, Philippines - Nico Salva, the UAAP Season 74 Finals MVP, voiced out during Ateneo’s “Four your White and Blue: Bonfire 2011” celebration what the four-peat champs Blue Eagles set out to do next season: Win a fifth straight championship.

“See you all at next year’s bonfire!” the star forward told a good number of supporters who braved the Saturday night rains to whoop it up with the triumphant cage team at the Grade School parking lot.

The bonfire is Ateneo’s traditional way of celebrating a conquest in the premier collegiate league and Salva has been in all four gigs, thus his excitement to cap his UAAP career with a fifth crown in 2012.

Coach Norman Black led the lighting of the bonfire, the highlight of the “wet” celebrations that also featured performances by some of the country’s hottest bands, autograph-signing and a dance routine by the team in an AV presentation that they repeated on stage upon the egging of the hosts.

The Ateneans saluted their three skippers who are due for graduation – Emman Monfort, Kirk Long and Bacon Austria – and three other victorious teams, the Blue Shuttlers (men’s badminton) and six-peat judo crew and seven-peat swimming contingent from Ateneo High School.

The 2011 bonfire was not all fun and merry-making, though, as the Blue Eagles lent their hand in Ateneo’s efforts to help families affected by typhoons “Pedring” and “Quiel” in Luzon.

The team’s starters made their pitch in a video played during the program and donated personal items such as shoes and jerseys worn during the finals/season for an auction meant to help raise funds for typhoon victims.

“Let us bring our one big fight to helping our brothers and sisters,” Monfort, Long, Salva, Kiefer Ravena, and Greg Slaughter said in unison.