IN CHESS, history makers do not only carve their name in time, but also carry a story to behold. Ateneo Women’s Chess Team (AWCT) Captain Kristine Mae Flores weathered a dry spell in the chess team alongside her teammates with their historic third-place finish in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 85.

From thereon, a drought was quenched and history was made. As As Season 86 draws near, expectations are now aplenty for Kristine and the chess team as the young varsity will yet again banner the quest to lead the Blue Eagles into the limelight once more. Nonetheless, underneath Kristine’s wings is a wind that keeps her afloat when the skies get rough—a story of humble glory.

Back to the roots

One can think that star-studded athletes started in their respective disciplines, but for the 21-year-old athlete, her first sport was volleyball before eventually shifting to chess. Although Kristine’s chess journey started off as a simple hobby, it turned into an avenue to reroute the harsh detours of life. Due to financial difficulties, the Laguna-based athlete recalled how she almost stopped attending high school due to socio-economic concerns.

“May time sa family na mayroon kaming financial difficulties, at dapat mag-stop na sana ako sa school (There was a time [when] our family had financial difficulties, and I was supposed to stop my schooling),” Kristine shares.

Regardless of her situation, Kristine remained resolute in playing chess and even used it as a pedestal to carry on with her education. A neighboring chess coach connected Kristine to Aplaya National High School Annex 1-APEX and got her under his wing to play chess competitively, despite being a late enrollee.

Under the tutelage of Coach Antonio “Tony” Yu Jr., Flores started to blossom as a competitive chess player as she qualified for various city meets in her first three months. However, Kristine’s path of rapid chess growth met a towering roadblock when she finished third in Laguna, denying her qualification for the Southern Tagalog CALABARZON Athletic Association (STCAA).

Nonetheless, this setback only propelled Kristine to a comeback in eighth grade, bouncing back to qualify for the STCAA. Marching forward for redemption, she copped her first medal in the Regionals. Thereon, Kristine constantly booked a ticket to the meet every year. However, she was unable to annex her name further in the Palarong Pambansa stage. “Laging pangatlo ako ta[po]s dalawa lang ‘yung kukunin (Only the top two would go through and I was always in third place),” Flores recalls.

Despite another mishap, Kristine went to even greater heights, winning a bronze medal in the 2017 Batang Pinoy tournament. Alongside her high school teammates, she ventured out to different competitions and grew significantly from the more seasoned opponents she faced, most of whom were between the ages of 40 to 60 years old.

Carrying that experience, Flores had another target in mind asu she graduated high school. Given her status as an award-winning chess player, the blooming athlete eyed a university that would allow her to flourish her skills in competitive chess.

Eyeing the hill

Kristine dreamt of becoming an Atenean, but she recognized that this was a pipe dream due to the towering tuition fees. This gutting truth was exacerbated by a heartbreak that she vividly remembers—failing to book a Regionals slot despite being a mainstay at this stage. Despite these seething pains, a path above the hills was underway.

Coincidentally, Coach Tony had connections with one of Ateneo’s chess tacticians—Coach Yves Rañola. At that time, the Blue and White were in search of new players to fill up their roster for the upcoming season, and that was when Kristine was introduced to him. After a week, she received a message that changed the trajectory of her life forever—being recruited by the Ateneo to be a varsity chess player.

Shifting gears

Amid a pandemic, Kristine entered the Blue Eagles’ nest with great enthusiasm. However, the circumstances at the time prompted the UAAP to cancel its 83rd season. Nevertheless, this did not stop her and the team from working on their craft, even in a virtual medium. Flores and her teammates solved puzzles and played chess online through weChess.org, a website their coach utilized as an alternative for the real board. 

In lieu of this change, she noted one difficult aspect. “‘Yung pinaka-challenging lang, hindi kami nakakasali ng tournaments kasi pandemic noon (The most challenging is we weren’t able to join tournaments because of the pandemic),” she shares.

As the pandemic gradually waned down, Flores’s lull from competitive chess would soon be over. The UAAP announced its return for Season 84, with chess being one of the few featured sports to make a return to the league. Entering her first collegiate competition, Flores felt proud about competing at such a high level of play, albeit with some nervousness.

The Blue Eagles began their Season 84 campaign with two draws over the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons and the Adamson University Lady Falcons, respectively. Despite their first loss against the De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archers, the team copped its first win against the Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws. They then sealed their spot in the Final Four with a stalemate against the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Lady Woodpushers.

However, the Blue and White dropped its first two games of the playoff phase against the Green Archers and the National University (NU) Lady Bulldogs. Despite the two-game skid, a medal was still in sight if they won their last game against the Lady Falcons. Unfortunately, it ended up being a 2-2 draw, with Ateneo barely missing the podium.

After falling just short of a medal, Flores stated that their misfortunes in Season 84 was the primary motivation for her team heading into Season 85 to bounce back, pushing them to double their efforts and continue with their training.

With another UAAP season approaching, Flores and her teammates sought to take one step further to achieve an elusive podium finish. However, the squad quickly realized it was not going to be a seamless road to success for the Blue Eagles.

Breakthroughs

The team had a rough beginning to Season 85, losing its first two matches in close fashion to the FEU Lady Tamaraws and the UST Lady Woodpushers. Undeterred by the shaky shart, Flores and her teammates were unfazed and won their next two assignments against the DLSU Green Archers and UP Fighting Maroons to right the ship.

Kristine recounted that at one point, one of her coaches asked her to bring the same intensity in training to the matches. Moreover, she recalled a time when Coach Yves encouraged the team to get together and give their best, which helped motivate them further. Those talks would spark a turning point for the Blue Eagles, notching crucial victories, including one against the defending champions NU Lady Bulldogs, which Flores considers a core memory for them as a team. However, the gears quickly shifted for them as a group to stay focused on the task at hand—to achieve a podium finish.

As fate would have it, the Lady Falcons would be Ateneo’s final opponents, with the bronze medal at stake once again. Avoiding a repeat of last year’s event, they redeemed their Season 84 defeat with a 4-0 victory, sealing the Blue and White’s return to the podium for the first time since 2011. The historic feat was a proud moment for Kristine, witnessing the work put in by the team to bounce back from their heartbreaking finish the season prior. Looking back now months after the victory, the 21-year-old proudly shares how the hard work and training were worth it by the end of their journey.

Adding to her accolades, Kristine was heralded as one of the two gold medalists for Ateneo alongside outgoing team captain Alexis Oseña. Flores credited her team’s rigorous training and their dedication to constantly improving, allowing them to stay sharp amidst the pandemic and remain ready for every opponent standing in their way.

Now with enhanced experience on the chessboard and hardware to flaunt, the ever-persistent veteran from Laguna has risen to the mantle of team captain for UAAP Season 86. Riding on this momentous honor, Flores hopes to lead the team in continuously improving both as a team and as individuals. While they have specific goals for the upcoming season, she banks on the mindset to exert “100% effort,” regardless of any outcome.

It is no secret that Kristine Flores’ grit throughout her humble journey to glory is a testament to how persisting through ups and downs will be worth it in the end. Facing multiple setbacks early on, she propelled herself to soar high with a lot more to give. Flores is now entering her two final years in the Ateneo and is eager to leave a legacy, hoping to bring the widely unrecognized Ateneo chess scene into the limelight. With the help of her leadership and grit, the spectacle of chess can surely rise from the ground up in Loyola Heights.