The longest active winning streak in the UAAP lives on.
University of the East secured a record-extending 13th consecutive high school boys’ championship at the UAAP Season 87 Fencing Championships, Thursday at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Malate, Manila.
UE’s sabre team, spearheaded by Khiane Felipe, clinched the title with a thrilling 45-42 victory over Ateneo de Manila University in the gold medal match. But the crown was virtually sealed earlier in the day, following the semifinal results.
Ateneo edged out University of Santo Tomas in their semifinal bout, 45-41. UST had earlier captured gold in the boys’ epee team event, making them the only other squad with a shot at matching UE’s three-gold haul before the sabre final.
Felipe, who also won the individual sabre crown earlier in the week, said that playing without pressure made the difference in their title-clinching match.
“Mas nakapag-focus po kami sa laro, na kahit dikit ‘yung laban, wala na pong kaba sa ‘min. Naglalaro po kami para na lang do’n sa finals na ‘yon na wala ng iniisip na pressure or kahit anong iniisip. Wala na ‘yung kailangan ganito, kailangan ganiyan, so naglalaro na lang kami para sa gold medal,” said the third-year standout.
With this win, UE continues to reign supreme in the boys’ division — an ambition they set at the beginning of the season.
Felipe added, “Nakatanggal na po sa kaba kasi na-sure na namin ngayong third day pa lang ‘yung championship. And ‘yung mga maglalaro po bukas na ibang players, maglalaro na lang sila ng walang pressure, walang iniisip, pero kailangan pa rin nilang makuha ‘yung gold.”
UE’s sabre team lineup included Felipe, James Lim, Brynt Gale, and John Bryan Sembra. Ateneo fielded Adam Aceron, Mairon Moulic, Enrico Ronsayro, and Matthew General. UST and De La Salle Zobel each took home bronze medals.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
The Junior Warriors have already bagged four gold medals with just one event left in the schedule — foil team , with UST in second, with just one gold from the morning’s sabre team event.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
Over in the collegiate men’s division, University of the Philippines derailed UE’s bid for supremacy after Miggy Bautista kept his promise of delivering gold in the epee team event.
Bautista, along with former junior national team members Dexter Ramos and Lorenzo Malvar, and alternate Luiz Buentipo, dominated UE in the finals, 45-31, giving UP its second gold of the tournament and tying them with the Red Warriors in the gold medal count heading into the final day.
UP earlier survived a tough semifinal bout against De La Salle University, edging the Green Archers 45-42 behind Bautista’s steady hand.
“It’s good that he had my back, and he got mine. And knowing that if one fails, the other can pick it up for us,” said team captain Ramos.
“Kanina, actually kinakabahan na ko. Pero the thing that got me through was our coaches, si coach Apa (Rondain) and si coach Allan (Dator), just reminding me what to do properly. Honestly, at that time, the only problem that we had is we’re losing our basics and they just reminded us to go back to those basics.”
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
Despite the loss in epee, UE added another gold earlier in the day in the men’s sabre team event, defeating UST’s squad led by Eunice Villanueva, 45-37.
DLSU picked up bronze medals in both epee and sabre team events, while Ateneo also secured a bronze in sabre. UST completed the podium in the epee competition.
The Red Warriors still keep the lead with 2-3-1 medal tally ahead of the Fighting Maroons’ 2-0-2.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
In the women’s division, UP continued its golden streak. The Fighting Maroons earned their first gold of the tournament after a nail-biting 42-41 win over UST in the foil team final, led by Jannah Catantan.
Mariel Flores, who had been part of UP’s silver medal finishes in Seasons 85 and 86, anchored the team and fended off Catantan’s late rally to seal the victory.
“For the past two years, we’ve always won silver, even though we know we could get the gold, and, finally, we had our game plan and it worked. We were able to execute it properly, and it was not just because of me, the anchor, but I would say it’s because of the whole team effort,” said Flores, now in her third year and a bronze medalist in the individual foil.
“I just trusted my teammates, myself, and the coaches; so because of that I asked what I would do to beat (Catantan) and the only advantage that we had was the time. I would say that Ysah Catantan is a better fencer in terms of performance, pero sa puso talaga and sa drive, I would say UP really had it today.”
DLSU and UST rounded out the podium in the women’s foil team event.
UST still keeps its pole in the women’s division with a 2-2-1 medal tally ahead of UP and UE, which both hold a 1-1-2 record.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
Season 86 MVP Opao Cantantan paced UE’s charge in foil team final, 45-37, against Miyake Capina and the rest of the DLSZ squad, to put the Junior Warriors marginally ahead of the pack in the girls’ division’s overall tally.
Ateneo and UST rounded up the podium in the girls’ side’s lone event of the day.
The Junior Warriors are up by a gold with a 2-1-3 medal tally, just above UST’s 1-1-1 and Ateneo’s 1-0-0.
