“Sanford” Vinuya faced the biggest battle of his young career when ECHO took on reigning M3 World Champions Blacklist International in the regular season of the MPL Philippines Season 10.
And of course, the 16-year-old EXP laner badly wanted a win on Sunday night.
But it wasn’t for himself. It was for his beloved uncle, Amando Alonzo, who is also currently facing the biggest battle of his life.
“May sakit po siya sa puso, na-stroke po,” Sanford told Tiebreaker Times.
(C) MPL PH
Blacklist International drew first blood in the series, taking a 19-10 Game One win in almost 17 minutes. A pickoff on Karl “KarlTzy” Nepomuceno proved to be the deciding factor as the Tier One-backed squad easily secured the Lord to run away with the win.
Sanford, using his uncle as his main motivation, willed ECHO back into the series after helping the team establish a huge advantage in Game Two that led to a dominant 17-5 triumph, where he finished with three kills and four assists on Benedetta.
Then in Game Three, the former Nexplay EVOS standout helped Karl “KarlTzy” Nepomuceno’s Thamuz secure the game-winning Lord while the rest of the team zoned out the Blacklist International contingent. Sanford ended up with a kill and four assists against three deaths in the 14-9 victory.
According to Sanford, it was his way of sending a message to his ailing uncle. But before all that, he also made sure to push his feelings to the side first as he wanted to focus on the match.
“Medyo malala po yung condition niya. So, kaya ko po talaga pinilit na mai-panalo ‘to para magbigay ng message sa kaniya na lumaban pa siya sa sakit niya. Parang pang-palakas niya po,” said Sanford.
“Hindi naman po (naka-apekto), sakto lang po. Nag-focus po muna ako sa laban kasi sobrang lakas ng kalaban namin, kailangan ko talagang i-buhos yung lakas ko dito.”
