THE ATENEO Blue and Lady Eagles concluded the last two days of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 80 Track and Field tournament with a combined total of seven medals, en route to a vastly improved performance from a season ago.
Days 4 and 5 were held on Saturday and Sunday, February 10 and 11, in the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
Blue Eagles
Sandi Siongco’s standout performance in the Men’s High Jump was the highlight for the Blue Eagles on Day 4. After clearing 1.90m on his first attempt, Siongco was unable reach 1.93m in the next.
Nevertheless, the high-flying rookie was able to clinch the bronze in the event, making him the second Ateneo rookie to medal in Season 80 following Nate Rosal’s Javelin bronze.
Fellow rookie Mark Operario, who was fatigued from competing in the Decathlon in both days prior, also competed in the high jump and was only able to clear a height of 1.65m earning 10th overall.
Julius Yim then came in ranking 10th for the 5000m event with a time of 17.21.18 minutes while in the Discus Throw rookies, Hughie Chua (32.19m), Carlo Ferrer (31.23m) ranked 7th and 10th respectively while Paolo Laxamana did not meet the mark.
Returning veteran Gaspar Lorenzo, however, threw a distance of 34.58m in the same event to just miss out on a podium finish as he ranked fourth. The Blue Eagle trailed Kenneth Rafanan’s (De La Salle University) bronze 34.82m, but expressed his satisfaction of beating his personal record.
The Hammer Throw as the first event of Day 5 which saw Ateneo Captain Che Guevarra (27.61) and rookies Laxamana (31.07m) and Rosal (26.74m) ranking 7th, 6th, and 9th respectively.
Miguel Villareal then competed in the 110m Men’s Hurdles. The rookie finished at 16.84s, ranking 5th in his heat and 9th overall, missing the final by over half a second.
The team did not participate in the 4x400m relay due to injured runners Guevarra, Maui Ramos and Jonathan Talbot, as well as fatigued rookie Operario. Head Coach Mick Perez opted to pull them out to reduce the risk of further injury.
The Blue Eagles ended their UAAP campaign in 6th place with a grand total of 84 points, improving from last year’s 44 points. The team had a total of three medals; one of them a gold from Ateneo Captain Henry Gonzales in the Decathlon while the other two came from rookies in Nate Rosal and Sandi Siongco who both took bronze for the Javelin Throw and High Jump respectively.
Lady Eagles
Ateneo Women’s Track and Field Team’s only event of the Day 4 was the Women’s Shot Put where Vanessa Baguiwet would display her strength. The former captain reached a distance of 11.35m, taking home the bronze for the Blue and White. It would be the second bronze for Baguiwet in Season 80 and the fourth medal for the Lady Eagles.
The Lady Eagles then opened the final day with the Long Jump where rookies Viah Mostoles and Isabella Artuz took the sand. Mostoles reached 5.22m ranking 8th while Artuz struggled to rank 20th after achieving a distance of 4.19m.
Rookie Marga Delos Reyes, who buckled a bit in the final laps of the 1500m, managed a time of 5:45.71 minutes as she finished 11th.
The main event was the 4x400m relay that was run by Lady Eagles Vanessa Baguiwet, Sheila Patiño, Delos Reyes and Captain Kim Zulueta, in that order. After a powerful start by Baguiwet, the squad remained competitive but lacked the speed to overtake their competitors. Eventually, the quartet achieved a time of 4:14.48, taking 5th place behind FEU (4:10.20).
At the conclusion of all events, the Lady Eagles earned a 5th place finish with a a grand total of 83.5 points.
The team vastly improved from their 44-point 6th-place finish last year, mainly due to the return of Vanessa Baguiwet, the improved skills of pole vaulters Jia Kawachi, Martha Capistrano, and Captain Kayla Yao. Zulueta’s eventual boom and the boost of new talent like Mostoles and Delos Reyes also helped the team’s campaign.
Looking ahead
In total, Ateneo ended Season 80 with seven medals including Gonzales’ gold in the gruelling Decathlon as officials proclaimed him the “best athlete in the UAAP.” The team’s improvement is evident considering they ended Season 79 with only two medals.
Head Coach Mick Perez owed the improvements to new talent. “The rookies met expectations. We had goals set and they all met the goals we set for them,” he said.
Perez expressed his optimism for the team’s future. “We really have a solid, progressive program. we’re getting good athletes who could score already at college level. Then of course, those with us now will develop even further. They’ll even prove to be better next year.”
Ateneo Medals
Kim Zulueta (Bronze – 100m & 200m)
Vanessa Baguiwet (Bronze – Discus Throw & Shot Put)
Henry Gonzales (Gold – Decathlon)
Nate Rosal (Bronze – Javelin)
Sandi Siongco (Bronze – High Jump)
UAAP Track and Field 80 General Standings
Men’s
Champion: FEU (425 pts)
2nd: UE (222 pts)
3rd: DLSU (220 pts)
Women’s
Champion: UST (434 pts)
2nd: FEU (357 pts)
3rd: UP (170.5 pts)
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