Passi City native King Pamplona initially joined the University of Santo Tomas tryouts merely for experience before planning to return home to Iloilo.
Instead, that simple decision turned into something remarkable — he became a key piece in UST’s first-ever boys’ division title in the UAAP.
“After nung Palaro this year, naisip ni Papa na dumaan kami sa UST para mag-tryout kasi nakita niya meron daw scheduled tryout dun,” shared Pamplona, who represented Western Visayas in the Palarong Pambansa.
Then a Grade 10 student at Passi National High School, Pamplona only wanted to gain more experience after his team finished 12th in the standard event, and seventh in the blitz event of the Palarong Pambansa 2025 in Laoag, Ilocos Norte, last May.
He was also part of the Western Visayas team that bagged the gold medal in the blitz event of the 2024 Palarong Pambansa secondary boys’ chess tournament in Cebu.
“Yung plano dapat, parang practice lang sana siya. Nag-try lang po talaga kami sa UST para pandagdag lang experience,” he recalled.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
Unexpectedly, Pamplona impressed the coaches by dominating the tryouts, earning a spot in the España-based squad’s roster for the UAAP Season 88 High School Tournament.
He tallied 6.5 points in seven rounds, finishing a full point ahead of the next best contenders in the UST tryouts.
Now a senior high school student at UST, Pamplona delivered a standout performance in his UAAP debut for the Junior Male Woodpushers, particularly in their matches against defending champion Far Eastern University–Diliman.
He first secured a crucial draw in Round 3 as the España-based team stunned FEU-D, 2.5-1.5, to seize the early tournament lead.
In their pivotal Round 8 clash, Pamplona once again rose to the occasion, scoring UST’s lone victory that forced a 2-2 draw against the Diliman-based squad.
That result gave UST a pressure-free final round, needing only a draw to clinch its first-ever UAAP boys’ chess title.
Despite his Cinderella run, Pamplona remains grounded and determined to improve as he looks ahead to defending the crown next season.
“Okay naman yung naging performance ko this season pero pangit yung laro ko nung first half. Parang pangit yung kondisyon ng laro ko nun kasi may sakit ako nun,” he admitted.
What began as a spontaneous decision to join a tryout turned into a defining moment in his young career — a story of quiet confidence, courage, and the extraordinary rewards that can come from taking a chance.
