THE ATENEO Blue Eagles finished off their comeback weekend with a dominant performance, exacting revenge from a loss in the previous Battle of Katipunan with a 3.5-0.5 series win against their the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons when they returned to the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Quadricentennial Pavilion on Sunday, October 7, for the eighth matchday of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 81 Chess Tournament.
The Blue Eagles played the same lineup they used in the last matchup with UP, inserting Team Captain Gavin Ong to take on a veteran role for the squad as he was grouped with first-year players Vince Edralin, Tristan Cervero, and Alexander Santos for the first game of the round-robin. The Fighting Maroons went through a similar route, copying the same lineup of John Vito Cruz, Brent Alanan, Joshov Rosarda, and Fernando Mendoza to challenge them for the second time in the season.
First-board honors were given to Ong as he faced off against UP’s Cruz. Recognizing his matchup from last week, Ong entered the competition focused on earning redemption for the Blue and White by planning to attack according to his opponent’s moves. The third-year veteran was able to edge out Cruz, giving Ateneo a one point lead early in the match, 1-0.
Edralin was chosen for the second board to match up with the Fighting Maroons’ Alanan. With six games under his belt, the rookie was able to use his newfound experience to correctly predict a rendition of the Reversed Reti Opening, a combination where the Knight pieces are moved to squares D2 and F4 followed by a castling performed Kingside, from his opponent. Edralin then continued repelling attacks, using his Bishop pair to outmaneuver Alanan’s board to extend Ateneo’s advantage to 2-0 midway through the series.
The third board responsibilities were handed over to Cervero as he played Rosarda for the second time this season. Both he and Rosarda started with the London System Opening, a setup where the King’s Pawn and Bishop are exposed to the center rows of the board early in the match.
Cervero engaged in a number of exchanges with the Fighting Maroon over the course of the game but managed to come out on top after a UP attack error in the closing stages of the match. This gave him his second individual win of the season as well as Ateneo’s third full point of the day.
Approaching the elusive series sweep, all eyes turned to Santos as he went up against the Fighting Maroons’ Mendoza on the fourth board. The rookie used his patented read-and-react skills to level with Mendoza’s unpredictable playstyle to close the match at a draw, leaving the Blue and White half a point shy of a sweep.
After Ateneo’s impressive output this weekend, Ong was keen to heap praise on his teammates, thanking all of them for showing Ateneo fans how to rise up after tough times the Blue Eagle way.
“I’m very proud of my team for doing the unthinkable today. I want to commend each and every one of them for pouring their hearts out each match, and showing us what it means to be a Blue Eagle,” he said.
“I believe our team has gained more experience overall, and from our mediocre start, we were able to somewhat make-up for it. We must never forget to thank our God for always providing us each and every game. We owe it to him for all our wins, draws, and losses.”
The Ateneo Blue Eagles will look to extend their winning streak heading into their next match against defending champions the National University (NU) Bulldogs on Saturday, October 13, at the same venue.
