CAPAS, Tarlac— University of Santo Tomas continued to assert its dominance at the UAAP Season 87 High School Swimming Championships, with both the girls’ and boys’ teams leading the competition at the close of the penultimate day at the New Clark City Aquatics Center here.
The UST girls’ team claimed five more gold medals on Day 3, along with a silver and three bronze medals, bolstering their commanding lead with 413 points.
Ateneo de Manila University solidified its hold on second place with 208 points after adding four silver and two bronze medals.
Meanwhile, University of the Philippines Integrated School remained steady in third with 147 points.
Despite individual efforts from Ateneo and UP, the gap to UST only widened.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media TeamA
The lone gold to elude UST on Day 3 came courtesy of UPIS’s Aubrey Tom, who clinched the girls’ 200-meter freestyle in 2:15.35. Teammate Liv Abigail Florendo secured silver in 2:16.39, while Ateneo’s Liaa Margarette Amoguis took bronze with a 2:16.56 finish, boosting her MVP aspirations.
Amoguis also claimed silver in the girls’ 400-meter individual medley (5:24.71), finishing behind UST’s Patricia Mae Santor, who clocked 5:20.92.
Santor added another gold in the girls’ 50-meter butterfly with a time of 29.46 seconds, keeping her MVP hopes alive with 66 points in five events.
Amoguis leads the race with 67 points across six events, setting up a thrilling finale with one event left for her, and two for Santor.
Santor Overcomes Challenges to Shine for UST
Despite her victories, Santor admitted encountering challenges.
“Usually kasi nasa Rizal tayo [and] ngayon na nasa Tarlac na, medyo different ang feel ng tubig, different ang temperature [which is] for me hard to adapt [to]. Pero still, I was able to win some medals and get PB,” she said.
She also shared the struggle of balancing academics and training.
“There are academics which I have to do [and] syempre kailangan may time for training. It’s been hard for me pero I am glad to get those medals kahit na mahirap ang schedule,” she added.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
UST’s other Day 3 gold medalists included Clara Yzabela Delos Santos in the girls’ 100-meter breaststroke (1:17.35), Kristine Jane Uy in the girls’ 100-meter backstroke (1:08.15), and the team of Raina Samantha Leyran, Sinagtala Cuevas, Uy, and Gerice Oyaman, who set a new UAAP record of 1:54.39 in the girls’ 4×50-meter freestyle relay, breaking the 2018 mark of 1:54.47.
UST Boys’ Team Inches Closer to Another Championship
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
On the boys’ side, UST amassed 13 of the 18 medals at stake on Day 3, including five golds, bringing their total to an insurmountable 546 points.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
Ateneo trailed in second with 180 points, buoyed by a standout performance from Miguel Luis Martinez, who captured gold in the boys’ 100-meter breaststroke with a time of 1:07.49.
Leading UST’s charge was runaway MVP favorite Aishel Evangelista, who added two more golds to his tally in the boys’ 200-meter freestyle (2:01.89) and the boys’ 400-meter individual medley (4:52.10).
Evangelista now boasts 80 points with one event remaining.
“My motivation is from my late father,” Evangelista shared. “I know he’s still beside me in all my swims. Because of him, I am now this strong, and I’m thankful for him as he has trained me for life.”
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
Teammates Ryian Zach Belen and Kristoff David also delivered gold-medal performances, winning the boys’ 50-meter butterfly (25.80 seconds) and 100-meter backstroke (59.47 seconds), respectively.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
The day concluded with UST’s boys’ 4×50-meter freestyle relay team of Belen, Timothy Capulong, Jacob Andrein Tejada, and Joaquin Mirasol setting a new UAAP record of 1:38.18, shattering the previous season’s 1:39.09 mark.
The UAAP Season 87 High School Swimming Championships wrap up on Wednesday, with the final day featuring preliminary rounds in the 50-meter backstroke, 200-meter breaststroke, 200-meter butterfly, and 50-meter freestyle at 8:30 a.m. Finals will begin at 2:00 p.m.
