Sports
SEPTEMBER 26, 2015
Chasing the 41st title BY THE SPORTS TEAM
THOMASIAN athletes are hungrier than ever to keep the overall crown in España. Here is the second part of The Varsitarian’s prediction of the University's performance for the first semester sports this UAAP Season 78. Growling Tigers Last year: Sixth place Prediction: Finals With Ed Daquioag’s emergence as an MVP-caliber player, along with Kevin Ferrer's and Karim Abdul’s steady performance, the Tigers are primed to go to the last dance after stumbling to a 5-9 finish last season. The Tigers’ bench, one of the deepest in the UAAP, will be spearheaded by sharpshooters Renzo Subido and Louie Vigil, along with rookie scorers Mario Bonleon, Enrique Caunan, Marvin Lee, and Zachary Huang. “Gusto naming umabot sa finals, pero we will have to approach the season one game at a time,” coach Bong dela Cruz told the Varsitarian. Growling Tigresses Last year: Fourth place
Prediction: Finals With veterans Mythical Five member Lore Rivera, Kristine Siapoc, and Kim Reyes exhausting their playing years, head coach Chris Cantonjos is hoping that the Tigresses will flourish under new team captain Maica Cortes. The Tigresses will bank on the momentum of their championship in the Filipino-Chinese Basketball League and runner-up finish in the Fr. Martin Pre-season Cup. Returning Shanda Anies will bolster the run-and-gun offense with her outside shooting. With Cortes and Filipino-Americans Candice Magdaluyo and Sofia Felisarta playing in their final year, Cantonjos is expecting that the team will exceed their disappointing finish last season. “Sabi ko nga sa mga player, hindi tayo maglalaro para sa fourth place lang. So, aim din namin ang championship,” Cantonjos told the Varsitarian. Male Judokas Last Year: Champion Prediction: Champion There is a long tradition of dominance by UST’s judo program and the UST Male Judokas are unfazed in defending their title this season. Even after missing the Philippine National Games, the squad is in top form coming off successful pre-season stints in the General Trias Invitational, Hajime Judo Tournament and Diliman Slam. The team’s lineup from last year’s championship run remains basically intact even with the departure of two Judokas.
Season 77 MVP Al Rolan Llamas seeks to lead the squad for a potential back-to-back championship. Lady Judokas Last Year: Champion Prediction: Champion Even with the departure of Season 77 MVP Annie Ramirez and four other seniors, the UST Lady Judokas still is a force to be reckoned with this coming season. Lady Judokas head coach Gerard Arce, who compared the team’s training to a soldier's, said their young athletes are well equipped before they “go to war.” Team captain Sueko Kinjho will lead the charge while there is a big expectation in rookie Miam Salvador who bagged silver and gold medals in the last Philippine National Games. Male Paddlers Last Year: Third Place Prediction: Finals After their semifinal meltdown against University of the Philippines last year, the UST Male Paddlers look to come out stronger and to never repeat the same mistake. Head coach Jackson Que believes that the Paddlers are at their peak entering the season as they parade a veteran lineup with no rookies this year. Team captain Adolfo Bazar will anchor the team together with Norielle Pantoja, Alberto Bazar, Christian Abendan and Gil Ablanque who trained with the Philippine Air Force last Title PAGE 15
Rizza Mae Darlucio
SpecialReport
New law scraps UAAP 2-year residency rule By JOHN CHESTER P. FAJARDO THE VULNERABILITY of homegrown talents being lured by other universities has been intensified with the enactment of a new law that “protects and promotes the rights of studentathletes.” Republic Act No. 10676 or the “StudentAthlete Protection Act” voids the UAAP's mandatory two-year residency, implemented in 2013, on high school student-athletes not released by their alma mater. Section 4 of the law, enacted last Aug. 26, states that “residency shall not be imposed on a student-athlete who is a high school graduate enrolling in a college or university” while collegiate transfers would only be limited to a maximum of one-year residency. The new law also defined the benefits a student-athlete should only receive, such as tuition, miscellaneous, lodging, learning materials, and athletic materials. However, it left a blind spot and failed to mention a concrete limit to the benefits that a student can accept, which could be abused by competing universities. This deepens the lingering issue of studentathlete “piracy” which points to the luxurious offers and bribery as reasons for athlete transferring to other institution. UST’s athletic authorities declined to comment on the issue. But in a previous interview with the Varsitarian in July 2014, Fr. Emerito de Sagon O.P., director of the Institute of Physical Education and Athletics said the then proposed “Student-Athlete Protection Act” would not stop schools from providing excessive incentives to lure players. “I don’t think this will solve problem because any school or university can deny the fact that they
are giving excess incentives to the athletes,” de Sagon had said. The issue became a hot topic in 2010 when Mikee Bartolome, a decorated high school swimmer trained by UST, opted to play for UP despite failing to secure clearance from UST. A temporary restraining order allowed Bartolome to compete. The UST Female Tigersharks went on to boycott the entire competition as a protest. Not a cause of worry While UST has bitter memories of athlete “piracy” with Alyssa Valdez, Kim Fajardo, Dindin Santiago among others leaving the University for what could have been a dynastic Golden Tigresses, concrete evidence of such claims has yet to be recorded. Then rookie sensation and Season 73 badminton MVP Peter Gabriel Magnaye left for NU. The Tiger Shuttlers struggled in the following years, finishing fifth last season. Siblings Therese and Pauline Gaston also left the Tigresses in two consecutive seasons and joined the Ateneo Lady Eagles. Therese said that it was education, not the incentives that convinced her to transfer to Ateneo but claimed that UST has “one of the finest [programs] in the country.” “I wanted to pursue what was best for my career path which was to get my education from Ateneo. They (Ateneo) just offered me a slot in the team, monthly allowance, and full scholarship,” Gaston said in a text message to the Varsitarian. Although a lot of these top-tier athletes left UST in the past, the Growling Tigers remains a top contending and recruiting team as athletes still see the University’s offer more beneficial, contrary to the belief that UST is just a “milking factory” of other universities.
UST has one of the best benefits when it comes to student-athlete accommodation— lodging, allowance, daily meals, advanced facilities, and an excellent medical assistance and hospital which other schools do not have. These benefits and familiarity halted Tigershark rookie Skyler Claveria from accepting higher offers, which he decided not to disclose, from other institutions. “Naglalaro pa ko ng third at fourth year [high school] nag-offer na ang La Salle at Ateneo pero ‘yung mindset ko mag-stay na noon,” Claveria said in an interview. “May parts na mas maganda ‘yung bigay nila pero sa UST kasi kumpleto at ‘yung nagpa-stay sa akin ay ‘yung family na nadevelop noong high school saka dahil na rin sa magandang education.” Outside the limelight of mainstream sports, UST has nurtured a quality group of players from the province and turned them into stars. Beach volleyball standouts Cherry Rondina and Rica Jane Rivera were both recruited from Cebu last year and won four beach volleyball titles as a duo since then. The Golden Sox, meanwhile, houses 20 players from different provinces. Champion taekwondo team does not seem to Rule PAGE 14
Mariano to suit up for Ginebra Gin Kings in PBA By JOHN CHESTER P. FAJARDO AFTER a disappointing final UAAP year, with the Growling Tigers missing the Final Four after back-to-back finals appearances, Aljon Mariano will start anew in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) with crowd favorite Barangay Ginebra. The “Clutch Cat” slipped in the second round of the PBA Rookie Draft last Aug. 23, after getting picked 16th over all and will be playing his natural position as a shooting guard for Tim Cone, PBA’s winningest coach. “Looking forward na maganda ang ilaro ko kasi mas natural na ang positionw college,” Mariano told the Varsitarian. During his collegiate stint where he missed most of his first two years due to injuries, Mariano suited up as a small forward for the “small ball” style of play of the UST Growling Tigers which does not require a lot of height but leans on speed as the main point of attack. The 6-foot-3 Mariano said that he can adjust well with Cone’s patented triangle offense citing that it was also used in former UST head coach Pido Jarencio’s system. Mariano also said that he wants to prove that he "belongs in the league" and wishes for a "long and healthy career” while leaving the memory of the missed game-winning shot in game three of the UAAP Season 76 final behind which is “now a thing of the past.” "Malaki ang natulong sa ‘kin ng UST, doon ko talaga na-develop ang character ko and how I matured as a player,"Mariano said. In his last three years with the Growling Tigers, Mariano averaged 11.94 points on a 39.8 percent shooting, 6.76 rebounds and 1.96 assists. Mariano