SPORTS
Cindy Ashley G. Sy Sports Editor
Great wall of defense
Lady Tams trashes OLFU
June 2012
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Learn from the past
By Cindy Ashley G. Sy and Stephanie Ruth D. Navarro
Morayta-based cagebelles emerged triumphant against Our Lady of Fatima University (OLFU), in Fr. Martin’s Cup last May 13 at the San Beda College Gym, 68-37. Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws did not let OLFU tear them down. The 31-point lead of FEU made it easy for the Lady Tams to grab the victory though they had a rough time getting in to the groove in the first moments of the game. In the fourth quarter, the Lady Tams did not allow OLFU to gain composure as they fired continues twopointers which bubbled up to a 17-point lead, 47-32 with only less than five minutes left in the ball game. With time ticking down to its last seconds of the last quarter, the referee called a technical foul to FEU Head Coach Allan Albano due to a said wrong call by the referee that sent OLFU to the charity lane, but even with charities given, OLFU scored only three out of five gift shots, 68-35. Third quarter flamed as both teams speed up the way they played, only down by 10 points OLFU managed to score a few more jumpers and a lay-up with six minutes left in regulation, 31-22. Both teams were scoreless for less than two minutes as they struggled with shooting from beyond the arc as it is raining bricks and air ball. Claudine Supnet saved the Lady Tams from drought as she went to the charity lane, shooting 2 of 2 of her gift shots with 4:32 left in the third quarter, 33-22. OLFU
regained composure and fired another four points, 35-27. But their force wasn’t enough to out play the UAAP Season ‘74 Champion and the reigning Mighty Sports AssociationPacific Online Cup title holder as FEU’s Karen Columna shoot another lay-up with 1:40 left on the clock, pushing the lead to ten points, 37-27. The Lady Tams played their hearts out on the second canto as they put OLFU to slumber. FEU fired massive shots, making the team in the lead 24-15 with 2:01 left in the clock for the second quarter. While feeling each other out during the first quarter, it was OLFU who drew first blood 0-2 at the 7:21 mark. Supnet’s jumper marked the Lady Tams’ first basket for the quarter 5:43. Supnet, April Siat and Columna, hand in hand carried the team with combined 36 points and managed a 22-6 run in the second period. Turnovers and misses seemed to be the problem the entire game. According to Head Coach Allan Albano “Kasi hindi sila naglaro ng smart basketball, basta pasa lang ng pasa. Hindi nila alam may defense pala du’n. Wala sila sa tamang p o s i ti o n p u ro a t tempts. Pwede naman mag-extra pass (Because they did not play smart basketball, they pass the ball around without thinking about the defense, they have a lot of misses because they are not in their right position and they did not thought of passing the ball).” D u r i n g t h i s pre-season cup, Albano
Defenders of the crown. Cagabelles grab semifinals berth. (Photo by Paul Edgar D. Yorsua, Jr.)
concentrated with the team’s defense and a lecture on smart basketball. “Kailangan pa naming mag double work sa defense, if they want na pumasok sa finals at mag champion ulit, kailangan nila mag double work (We have to work on our defense. If they want to reach the finals and be the champion they have to work twice as hard),” said Albano. Before the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season
‘75 starts, he wishes to see a difference in their defensive scheme. “Kailangan naming i-emphasize nang mabuti, di pa kasi nila nakukuha ‘yung gusto ko mangyari, pero paunti-unti makukuha din nila ‘yan (We have to emphasize it very well, they are still working on getting used to the system that I want but in time I know they will get it),” furthered Albano. With reports from Lhea Jane S. Bagona
FEU bets top nationals, leads in int’l tilts Months before the regular season begin, members of the Far Eastern University (FEU) Men’s and Women’s Chess Team started picking up where they had stopped and made their moves to put the pieces back together. In their most recent skirmish, the board generals showed their tactics and maturity in the Philippine Sports Commission-Philippine Olympic Committee (PSCPOC) National Games. University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) silver medalist Lennon Hart Salgados led the Tamaraws in the 65-man openage field with an eighth place finish, behind seventh placer Grandmaster Eugene Torre and above ninth Joey Albert Florendo, a National Master (NM) and University of Santo Tomas mainstay. UAAP Women’s gold medalist and Woman National Master (WNM) Jedara Docena with Janelle Mae Frayna and Angelina Mortos, claimed the first, third and fifth spots for FEU, in order. In the youth division, Dominique Lagula of the men’s team ranked fourth out of 47, while Gladys Hazelle Romero Blue Eagles... from page 12
FEU’s Russel Escoto started the festivities in the first canto by scoring a basket followed by Terrence Romeo’s lay-up,4-2, 8:05. Garcia steals the ball from ADMU and passed it to Romeo to score a basket, 8-5, 7:10. Slaughter scored back-to-back floaters to push a one point lead, 10-11. FEU went to the foul line making four of six. But ADMU’s Salva made backto-back jumpers that cut the
By June Ace G. Esteban
Unstoppable. FEU Woodpushers exemplifies their deadly moves to win their matches. (FEU Advocate stock photos)
and Nikki Erika Yngayo of the women’s earned second and fourth out of 28, accordingly. Last March in Misamis Oriental, Salgados and Docena took the bronze and gold medals in the National Junior Chess Championships, with the former topping the 20-years-old-and-under Boys’ category along 20-under Girls’ champion (Luzon and Mindanao) Frayna, respectively, in the National Age-Group tilt.
Lagula and Yngayo also bagged the fifth and second honors in the first tourney, as the champions of the latter will go to Vietnam for the ASEAN Age Group Chess Championships from June 10 to 20. In the 2012 National Age Group and National Junior Chess Championships in Tanauan, Batangas on the first week of May, Docena amassed 23 points to nip fellow WNM Frayna by a point,
booking herself a trip to Athens, Greece as the country’s top bet in the 2012 World Junior Chess Championships. On the same note, Lagula earned a sit going to the Asian Youth Championships in Sri Lanka after edging Salgados for top honor in the National Age Group Chess Championships Grand Finals. Yngayo and Romero settled for fourth and fifth there, respectively.
lead, 14-15 with less than two minutes left in the regulation. Romeo who contributed a team-high 18 points and a rebound, sealed the first quarter 16-15. According to FEU Head Coach Robert Flores, “Naging kulang ng team yung sa defense...Okay naman pinakita ng mga boys, nag i-improve lahat pati defense gumana naman si Hargrove at talagang nagstep-up siya pati yung other big men kasi nung fourth quarter bad na
laro ng wing man natin, si R.R at Terrence. (The team had lapses when it comes to defense... But nevertheless, the boys played well, all of them are improving and working with the defense, Hargrove really stepped up for the team and the other big men because our wing men, R.R and Terrence were struggling in their shots during the fourth quarter).” In this game, FEU shot 67 percent from the charity stripe against Ateneo’s
60 percent. However the Katipunan-based cagers dominated the boards for the ball game with 37-50. This was the last game for the Tams who failed to enter the Finals for two consecutive seasons. Last season, they placed third only to be beaten by Ateneo, again. -Stephanie Ruth D. Navarro and Hannah Grace N. Ramil
“There is no present or future, only the past, happening over and over again, now.” – Eugene O’neill, A Moon for the Misbegotten For six straight seasons now, the FEU Men’s Basketball Team has not yet been able to live up to their name of being the best as they always go down as “second best.” But what has been hurting the community is that year by year, they perform well at the start but just run out of gas towards the end. I have been a big fan of FEU team since I was in high school, watching games live or on the boob tube. Cheering for the Tams until I lose my voice, I would never forget the time when Arwind Santos and the rest of the Season 68 guys carried the team to their 19th UAAP title under their rookie coach Robert Flores. It was a season to remember for the Tams who gave all their best and who had a roster packed with graduating students who chose to play their fifth and final year in order to win the gold. It is been awhile now since I last saw them carry the trophy and probably a lot of you, students, faculty members and alumni are disappointed on how we finished the basketball season. But that is what I like about basketball. One minute, you are on top; the next minute, you see yourself in the middle or below the standings. Truly the saying “bilog ang bola” really exists. As a spectator and at the same time a writer, I know how it feels like being with a team who is always the top pick before the season starts but loses in the end to a foe which was just so towering. Last season 74, the lost against Ateneo Blue Eagles was really devastating. With injuries crawling to the roster of FEU and without their team captain JR Cawaling on their side, they were no match to Ateneo’s lethal weapons Greg Slaughter and Kiefer Ravena. Let us fly back to Season 60 when FEU was crowned as the champions. After the said season, it took the team five gruelling years to get the gold under their belts. The team went from first place and went down to the 5th spot in Season 65 and for the next three seasons, the green and gold community became victorious. The drought made the team even hungrier for a championship trophy and so, who knows? The scarcity that the men’s basketball team is suffering right now may serve as their wakeup call. Now is the time to take action, now is the time to prove that they are the better team. Of course, we cannot just only count on history repeating itself but we must trust each other and mix the right combinations to build a team that will surpass the best of the best in the collegiate league. As we open new doors to new challenges, let us all be positive with the outcomes we can look at the past but we must not always dwell on them. Staying too much in the past can give us a notion that we are not ready to move on. My past editor June Ace once wrote “Do not be afraid of turning a chapter or putting the last period in the book. Sometimes, the good starts with the bad end.” We must believe in ourselves that we can do it and we can conquer the obstacles we face. If it is time to close the chapter of our life as we know in ourselves that we have failed to make it blossom, then try it. Do not linger on it as it can ruin a good start. It is good to go back in our past for some memories but we must also learn from the past so that we would not repeat the bad memory and change it for a better outcome in the future. Dwelling too much on the past? Move on and share your experiences at cindyashleygosy@gmail.com. Lady Shuttlers sizzle... from page 12
and UAAP Season 72 Rookie of the Year, stroke with Sonny Boy Montilla, both of which from Team Prima. Mayono and Sony Boy Montilla, ranked fourth as pair, drew bye in the first round, survived two scares against Annelyn Alba and John Robert Lozada, 21-17-21-19, and Chandra Mae Montilla and Clint Angelo Armamento, 1721, 21-19, 21-17, in 25 minutes and 41 minutes, respectively. The angels, though, were against them together when Gabriel Villanueva and Descka Calimlim judged them in a 45-minute semis, 15-21, 2110, 21-17.
Ranked second best in the initial rankings, Cayetano and Paz decided a better story to live with from beginning to end. Cayetano and Paz drew a first round bye, garrisoned Siena and Jeff Garcia of Ilocos Sur, 21-14, 21-9, charcoaled Legaspi and Charlo Tengco, 21-14, 18-21, 21-14, in 43 minutes, tossed out Aries Delos Santos and Flo Lamigo in a 46-minute semis, 19-21, 21-15, 21-14, and stood higher on top of national team standouts Villanueva and Calimlim to win the finals in 32 minutes, 13-21, 21-18, 21-18.