St. Peter the Apostle School faces its biggest test yet as the tournament underdog tries to derail Grace Christian College’s bid for a second consecutive championship in the 45-and-above division of the 2026 Fil-Chinese Athletic Association Inc. Basketball Tournament.
The two schools begin their best-of-three title series on Friday with St. Peter chasing a breakthrough championship against a Grace Christian squad determined to preserve its hold on the crown.
For St. Peter, reaching the Finals is already a milestone.
After years of competing in the tournament, the school has finally earned a shot at the title and hopes to make its first championship appearance count.
The Metro Asia and Manila Bulletin-backed squad secured its place in the Finals by turning back Xavier School, 62-49, combining contributions from across the lineup to eliminate the Stallions, who are supported by A Prime Corp and AcroCity.
Grace Christian, meanwhile, made a statement of its own.
The reigning champion, backed by Mintex and Fullercon, pulled away from St. Jude Catholic School in the third quarter to cruise to a 66-43 semifinal victory and move within reach of another title.
The defending champions will bank on Jeffrey Chua, Alexander Lao and Jay Jay Chu to lead their campaign, while St. Peter looks to Kerby Chua, Nestor Ng Jr. and Adrianne Wong to deliver against the more experienced opposition.
Despite the challenge of facing the reigning titleholder, St. Peter head coach Mac Tan believes his team can build on its recent performance as it prepares for the biggest series of its campaign.
“We have the momentum, but for us, it’s our first time. So magandang matchup ito. We will work hard in practice,” said Tan, who was joined by team governor Wesley Ong.
Grace Christian coach Danilo Ching, meanwhile, expressed confidence in his players while challenging them to raise their level of play in pursuit of another championship.
“Ako kasi, tiwala ako sa players ko na magpe-perform sila. Gusto ko may mas makita pa sa players ko kasi di sila as well-known as the senior players,” said Ching.
