At The SEA Games Episode 11: UAAP bets give PH golds

It was an arduous day again for Team Philippines as they continued to plunge into the 2015 Southeast Asian Games action. In the end of the day, two gold medals started and finished our participation in two disciplines: taekwondo and athletics, where athletes from the University Athletic Association of the Philippines shone for the country.

Ladies and gentlemen, we present to you our 11th installment of At The Games.
By: Aeron Valderrama, Joseph Bautista, Aldo Tong, Kim Leong, Joaqui Flores, Migs Flores, Levi Verora, Paolo Poblador, and Matthew Li

Athletics: Strong finish for the Philippines.

Screen Cap from Sport Singapore

IT RAINED bronze medals today as the Philippines struggled to build up its last burst of momentum for the last day of competition. Four bronze medals, one gold medal, and a national record were reaped today

Overall however, this year’s performance was showered with tons of personal best performances. Moreover, the young guns are starting to take over the track scene with the likes of Ernest Obiena, Kayla Richardson, Patrick Unso, Joan Caido, and Ryan Bigyan.

The future of the Philippines in the upcoming Southeast Asian (SEA) Games and beyond is looking brighter than ever.

Track Events

The men’s 400m heats in the afternoon shocked the Philippine contingency as defending champion Archand Bagsit failed to qualify for the finals, managing only to register a time of 48.78 seconds, almost two seconds away from his personal best of 46.88 seconds.

However, compatriot Edgardo Alejan managed to comfortably win his heat and qualify. Both Alejan and Bagsit competed in the men’s 4x400m relay which was held the night before. Fatigue was certainly an issue for both of these men.

Come the finals, Alejan managed to edge out Vietnam’s Van Thao Luong to win the bronze medal. In the process, Alejan produced a new personal best of 47.07 seconds.

The battle in the 400m finals was mainly between Vietnam’s Cong Lich Quach and Thailand’s Kunanon Sukaew. These men were the only ones who registered a sub-47 second run. Sukaew won the gold with a time of 46 seconds flat, edging out Quach just by a mere 0.02 seconds.

Another bronze medal was added to our country’s collection as Jessica Barnard clocked 10:36.90, setting a new personal best and Philippine national record.

Barnard kept a safe distance from Vietnam’s Thi Phuong Nguyen for most parts of the race. In the last lap however, Barnard switched gears to try and close the gap. Nguyen still won the silver however with over a four-second difference.

On the men’s side, Christopher Ulboc Jr., Vietnam’s Tien San Pham, and Indonesia’s Atjong Purwanto battled it out all throughout the race. From start to up until the last 300m of the race, these three men were leading.

Purwanto lead the race up until the last 300m when he was taken over by San Pham and Ulboc. For a moment, San Pham seemed to have had the race had he kept his pace. However, Ulboc still had a lot of speed and gas within him and has he cleared the last steeple, he showed no signs of fatigue or slowing down.

Ulboc won the gold with a time of 8:59.07, defending his title and setting a new personal best. The fast finishing Ulboc even managed to have time to celebrate early as he raised his arms in joy in the last 20m of the race.

Veteran Rene Herrera only managed to finish 10th with a time of 9:52.08 which is well outside his personal best.

The last event of the night was the women’s 4x100m relay. The quartet of Katherine Santos, Princess Griffey, and sisters Kyla and Kayla Richarson managed only to finish seventh with a time of 45.64 seconds.

Thailand and Vietnam overwhelmed everyone else as they were the only teams who clocked sub-45 seconds. Thailand won the gold with 44.27 seconds, while Vietnam won with 44.77 seconds.

Field Events

Donovant Arriola leapt a new personal best of 7.51m to win bronze, a measly 0.01m deficit from Vietnam’s Van Lam Pham who jumped 7.52m.

Arriola faced foul trouble during the course of the competition as he only had two out of the six jumps counted for. Had he also jumped his personal best of 7.64, he would have climbed up a step and won silver.

Defending champion Henry Dagmil had a bad day at the office as he only managed to leap 7.28m. Had he equaled his SEA Games 2013 performance of 7.80m, he would have grabbed the gold away from Thailand’s Supanara Sukhasvasti Na Ayudhaya who leapt 7.75m.

Heptathlon Conclusion

Narcisa Atienza concluded her heptathlon by giving the Philippines a bronze medal with a total score of 4798 points.

This performance gives the Philippines a three out of three podium finish in the multi-events, with Jesson Cid and Janry Ubas winning silver and bronze respectively in the men’s decathlon.

Halftime leader Kotchakorn Khamrueangsri lost her lead and finished second with 5280 points. Compatriot Sunisa Khotseemueang won the gold with 5396 points.

In summary:
Narcisa Atienza
100m Hurdles: 15.23 seconds
High Jump: 1.69m
Shot Put: 11.72m
200m Dash: 27.06 seconds
Long Jump: 4.78m
Javelin Throw: 39.29m
800m: 2:34.18

Archery: Compound archers reach medal rounds

In the second day of the knockout stages in the 2015 SEA Games archery tournament, the compound archers secured places in the medal matches, Friday at the Kallang Cricket Field.

In the men’s individual event, top Filipino qualifier Jose Ferdinand Adriano edged Myanmar’s Kyaw Shein Htet, 143-­142, in the Round of 16. Earl Benjamin Yap, similarly, kicked Kyaw’s compatriot Sone Pyae out of medal contention, 143­-134. In the last eight, however, the two Filipinos could not outshoot their opponents. Ruslan Zulfhadi of Malaysia defeated Adriano, 137-­133, while Indonesia’s Sapriatno Sapriatno beat Yap, 141­-136.

Picking up from where they left off in the individual event, Adriano and Yap, along with Paul Marton Dela Cruz, continued their mastery of Myanmar, winning 224­-214 in the quarterfinals of the men’s event. Indonesia nosed out the Filipino trio, however, in the semifinals, 235­-230, to relegate the Philippines to the bronze medal match.

Top women’s players Amaya Cojuangco and Joanne Tabanag hurdled their respective top 16 matches in contrasting fashion. Tabanag pulled through Thailand’s Sunee Detchokul, 139-­137, while Cojuangco breezed past Yah Yaw Sein, 143-­132. With the unlucky draw, the two Filipinas met in the quarterfinals. Cojuangco won over Tabanag, 137-­131, to move on to the Final Four. The Filipina top­seed did not waste the opportunity and dispatched Detchokul’s compatriot, Junsook Nareumon, 141-­135, to secure her place in the gold medal match.

The veteran trio of Cojuangco, Tabanag, and Jennifer Chan outpaced Laos in the quarterfinals, 217­-211. However, the Thais took revenge in the semifinals and upset the strong Philippine squad, 225­-224. The Nationals have to fight for the bronze.

Surprises did not end there but continued in the mixed team category. Cojuangco and Yap easily dealt with Myanmar, 154­-145, only for Thailand to again shove the Filipinos out of the gold medal match, 148­-145.

Basketball: Elims sweep for Gilas cadets, heartbreak for Perlas

The Philippine national basketball teams took contrasting paths Friday in the Southeast Asian Games hoops events, with the Gilas cadets cruising over hapless Timor Leste even as Perlas Pilipinas’ gold medal hopes dimmed after a heartbreaking defeat to Indonesia.

The Gilas cadets used a 40­-3 first quarter onslaught to pull away from a lowly Timor Leste side and record a 126­-21 victory. Prince Rivero scored 24 points on 13 shots in the win as the cadets swept its elimination round.

Perlas however, with a chance to win gold presented in front, failed to capitalize. The women’s team squandered a 12-­point lead early in the match and faltered in the end as the game slipped away in Indonesia’s favor, 61­-56.

Gilas resumes action on Sunday in the semifinals while Perlas concludes its campaign against Singapore on Monday.

Bowling: Philippines keeps steady pace, bags second bronze medal

Fresh from their acquisition of a bronze medal, the ladies of the PHI bowling team does it again as they battle their way to break into third position to take home the bronze for a second time on the their day of the 2015 SEAG Bowling Tournament. Their efforts, however, failed to carry over for the men as they once again fail to take home a medal.

Men’s and Women’s Group of Five Block 1

In a similar fashion as on the third day, competitors from both the Men’s and the Women’s Group of Five matches took to the lanes at the same time once again for the glory of the nation they represent.

Settling in to their previous third place finish, the women of the Philippine Bowling Team have finally grown accustomed to their medal position as they deliver yet another strong performance. Team Philippines was able to score a total of 2999 from the efforts of Liza del Rosario who scored 620, Marie Alexis Sy who scored 620, Krizziah Tabora who scored 610, Lara Posadas who scored 542, Liza Clutario who scored 607, and Maria Arles who scored a 514, but got disregarded for the first block.

With their female counterparts succeeding in breaking into the top three, the men of Team Philippines were more than ever motivated to excel. Sadly this did not seem to be the case, as the bad luck that’s been following them ever since seemed strong as the team comprised of Kenneth Chua who scored 593, Jonas baltasar who scored 492, Jo­Mar Jumapao who scored 599, and Enrico Hernandez who scored 588, totaled at only 2880 to land them at fourth.

Men’s and Women’s Group of Five Block 2

Already breaking into the top three, the women of Team Philippines only had to stay ahead of the lower ranked teams to grab a medal. Thankfully, they did just that as the efforts of del Rosario who scored 639, Sy who scored 578, Posadas who scored 486, Clutario who scored 516, Arles who scored 588 and Tabora whose score of 723 was disregarded for the second block added a hefty 2777 which totaled their score to 5776 to bag them the bronze.

The men of Team Philippines, could not echo the achievement of the female comrades yet again. Not only did they not break into the top three, but they also slipped one rank lower to land at fifth after a total score of 5629 allowed the host country’s team to overtake them at fourth.

Cycling: Team PH falters on Day 2

The Philippine cycling delegation participated in two medal events but went home empty­handed at the continuing 28th SEA Games action at the Marina Bay South.

Individual time trial gold medallist Marella Salamat finished 6th in the women’s criterium race in 44:22, ahead of compatriot Avegail Rombaon. In the men’s side, Jan Paul Morales finished 7th in 53:46. Jerry Aquino (12th), George Oconer (20th), and Rustom Lim (24th) is also part of that pack. Ronald Oranza registered 54:00 in 27th, while Mark John Galedo had 54:02 in 30th.

Floorball: Malaysia blanks the Philippines

The Philippine men’s floorball team dropped their second assignment of the 28th SEA Games after failing to score a goal, 0­10, against Malaysia, Friday at the ITE Central.

It was a tight game after the first period with the Malaysians leading with just two goals. However, the leading team added five more goals in the following period to break the game open; two of which came from power plays. Malaysia scored three more in the final canto to seal the rout.

Photo credits to Redsports.sg

The Filipinos had nine good shots into the goal, which the Malaysian keepers denied. In the Nationals’ case, the score could have been worse if not for the excellent performance of the Philippine custodians Jeremiah Beltran and Justin Santiago, who saved 19 and 15 shots, respectively.

Pencak Silat: Lone bet failed to advance Philippines

The Philippines lost its single Pencak Silat match in the second day of the tournament. Alam Renzel of the Philippines participated in the women’s tanding class D (60­65kg) quarterfinals, but lost, 5­0, to Selly Andriani of Indonesia.

Rowing: Mixed results for PH rowers

A deluge of events, all in its preliminary stages, took place in the second day of the rowing tournament and the Philippines was able to come out on top of two of the events.

Justine Karyle Vinas opened the day for the Philippines. He took part in the men’s lightweight singles. He finished third with a time of 3:40.55. Melcah Jen Caballero was up next, as she participated in the women’s single sculls. She finished fourth overall in of 3:57.76. Nestor Cordova was the third athlete to represent the Philippines. He clocked in 3:38.64. The three rowers will participate in the repechage races later to try and make the Finals.

Redemption was in store for the Philippines during the last two events. Benjamin Jr Tolentino and Edgar Ilas participated in the men’s lightweight double, finishing first with a record of 3:23.82 and progressing into the Finals. In the last event, Alvin Amposta and Roque Jr Abala finished first in the men’s pair, with a record of 3:37.73. They too qualified for the Finals of their event.

Sailing: Balangue keeps his place

The Philippine national sailing team’s lone bet for the day continued his steady performance at the National Training Centre ahead of later’s final race. 12­-year old Dazer Balangue kept his fourth place standing in the male optimist U16 event with going into the last race.

Sepaktakraw: Team PH is winless on first day

The men’s regu squad of the Philippines suffered two defeats last Thursday at EXPO Hall 1. In their first match of the group phase, Laos drubbed the Nationals, 21-­10, in the first set. The Filipinos then pulled through in the following set, 22-­20. The Laotians clinched the win, 21-­9. In their second match, Malaysia smothered the Filipinos, 21-­8 21-­7. The results put the country in last place in their group with one last game left against Singapore.

Squash: Another bronze for Philippines

In their semifinals match, the Philippines dropped their tie against powerhouse and host Singapore in straight sets in both two matches. Top player Robert Garcia succumbed to Vivian Rhamanan, 8­-11, 7­-11, 7-­11, while David Pelino lost to Samuel Kang, 5­-11 6-­11 3­-11. With the loss, the National snared another bronze.

Taekwondo: Team PH snares medals in Day 1

photo courtesy of Jean Pierre Sabido

In Day 1 of the 2015 SEA Games taekwondo competitions, the Philippine jins produced the medals as expected, Friday at the EXPO Hall 2.

World champion Rinna Babanto settled for the silver with a score of 7.480, after Singapore’s Sim Chelsea took the gold with 8.000, in the women’s individual poomsae. Babanto had 7.46 and 7.50 in Koryo and Taebak, respectively. The trio of Dustin Jacob and Raphael Enrico Mella, and Rodolfo Reyes Jr. made sure there will be no shutout as they clinched the gold in the men’s team poomsae with 7.850. The Filipinos led in both Keumgang and Pyongwon, 7.84 and 7.86, respectively, to walk away with the title.

In kyorugi, the two entries of the day also won medals. Jenar Torillos overpowered Vietnamese Nguyen Dinh Cuong, 19­3, in their quarterfinals match in men’s U54 kg. Torillos, however, lost to Malaysian Muhammad Azri Mohd in the semifinals via sudden death point, to settle for the bronze.

Irene Therese Bermejo, on her part, reached the gold medal match after stellar performances in her first two matches. The Ateneo standout demolished Myanmar’s Nway Nway and Singapore’s Xin Wei Chen, 16­7 and 29­5, respectively. In the finals, however, Truong Thi Kim Tuyen overpowered the Filipina, 19­7, to get the gold. Bermejo, thus, went home with the silver.

Tennis: PH netters clinch two bronzes.

With most matches delayed due to rain, only two matches resumed for the Philippine tennis team at the Kallang Tennis Centre.

The team absorbed two losses, however. In the men’s singles, Jeson Patrombon faltered against Sornbutnark Warit, 4­6 1­6, in their semifinals match to settle for the bronze. In the distaff side, Katharina Lehnert’s journey was also cut short after she absorbed defeat in the hands of another Thai Wongteanchai Varatchaya, 5­-7 1­-6.

Golf: PH golfers misses podium on campaign’s end

In the final day of the 28th SEA Games Golf Tournament held at the Sentosa Golf Club, the Philippines concluded its run with a fourth place finish after accumulating a grand total of 886 strokes.

Winning the gold medal in this year’s golf tourney is Thailand after it compiled a total of 859 markers. Host country Singapore would then nab the silver medal with 867 points while Indonesia captured bronze with 883 points.

Completing the rest of final rankings are Malaysia at fifth place with 892 points, Myanmar and Laos at sixth and seventh respectively with 922 points each and last but not the least, Cambodia landing at eight place with 1046.

Shooting: Men’s Trap Team secure bronze; Ang falls in individual trap

To open the day for the RP Shooting Team, Amparo Teresa Acuna and Inna Therese Gutierrez failed to qualify in the Women’s 50m Rifle 3 competition. Gutierrez placed last in the field in scoring 181 points in kneeling (87, 94), 189 in prone (95, 94), and 180 in standing (88, 92) to grab a total of 550-15 x. Compatriot Acuna placed 10th in the field of 14 with 188 points in kneeling (93, 95), 194 in prone (97, 97), and 183 points in standing (94, 89) in compiling a total score of 567-15 x.

In the second day of the qualification phase of the individual men’s trap shooting competition, three from the RP team competed in the competition. The young Miguel David Caperal placed 14th out of the 15 competitors with a 97-point score. Moreover, Hagen Alexander Topacio was unfortunate to lose in a shootout and did not qualify for the next round. Topacio was tied with Malaysia’s Seong Fook Chen and Thailand’s Savate Sresthaporn with 112 accumulate points before losing the shoot-out. Only Eric Ang advanced to the next round ranking third with 115 points.

Ang continued his good run onto the semifinals in ranking third to advance to the bronze medal match. Ang missed just two targets to qualify. However, the run Ang had took an unfortunate twist as he missed five out of a possible 15 targets against hometown favorite Mohd Zain Amat. Amat connected on 13 to secure bronze.

Finally, in the men’s trap team, composed of Ang, Topacio, and Laperal, gained a bronze medal in the competition. The team compiled a score of 328 accumulated points (66, 66, 62, 64, 66) with 115 coming from Ang (24, 24, 21, 22, 24), 112 from Topacio (24, 22, 21, 22, 23), and 97 from Laperal (18, 20, 20, 20, 19). The team was just five points shy of silver and the Singaporean team was way ahead with 343 accumulated points.

Waterpolo: Malaysia overcomes the Gators

After putting up a gallant stand in the first half, the apparent lack of SEA Games experience enabled the Malaysians to finally register a win against perennial bridesmaids Philippine Gators. Team captain and goalkeeper Tani Gomez Jr. had numerous saves but his teammates ran out of steam in the second half, allowing the Malaysians to outswim them in the counter­attack.

Gators coach Reynaldo Galang talk things through during the break | Screen capped from Sport Singapore

Goals by Juan Paolo Serrano (1), Mummar Alamara (1), and Norton Alamara (2) were simply not enough against Malaysia’s ten goals ­ five of which came in the third period. With two games down, the Gators have yet to register a win. They plunge back into action today against Thailand at the OCBC Aquatic Centre.