THE ATENEO Chess Teams closed out their second week of University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87 campaign with varying results earlier this afternoon at the Adamson University Gym in the City of Manila.
The Men’s Team suffered a 1.5-2.5 defeat against their rivals, the De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Woodpushers, while the Women’s Team settled for a draw versus the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Lady Woodpushers.
Leading the way for the Men’s Team were Paul Llanillo, Romeo Canino, Team Captain Khalil Kis-ing, and Knarf Batislaong.
UAAP Season 86 Gold Medalist Llanillo successfully captured the sole victory of the team against DLSU’s Cyril Telesforo, as Canino and Kis-ing both faltered against Angele Biete and Daniel Lemi, respectively. However, new recruit Batislaong secured half a point in a draw versus Kris Olvido.
Following their bout, veteran Kis-ing reflected on the lessons they learned and key takeaways moving forward. “Siguro, unang-una, ‘di kami maging overconfident. Last year, tinalo namin yung La Salle pero ngayon, they’ve gotten stronger with new additions,” stated the captain.
(First of all, we should not be overconfident. Last year, we defeated La Salle, but now, they’ve gotten stronger with new additions.)
Kis-ing also mentioned that a change of mindset is needed to triumph over the opposition for their upcoming games. “For the upcoming games, we should not be overconfident, and we just need to practice more,” he stated in a mix of English and Filipino.
Meanwhile, taking on the Lady Woodpushers were Team Captain Kristine Flores, Elayza Villa, Lexie Hernandez, and Alphecca Gonzales.
Villa secured the sole victory for the team as she overpowered Precious Yecla of the España-based squad. On the other hand, Gonzales struggled to find her rhythm as she stumbled against UST’s Princes Oncita. Subsequently, rookie Hernandez and skipper Flores settled for deadlocks against Christine Tabungar and Josemier Panol, respectively.
With these results, the Ateneo Men’s Chess Team looks to bounce back against the Adamson University Men’s Chess Team while the Ateneo Women’s Chess Team will take on the Far Eastern University Women’s Chess Team on Saturday, 1:00 PM, at the same venue.
