THE ATENEO Men’s and Women’s Chess teams competed in the ninth round of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 80 Chess tournament on Saturday, March 17.
The Blue and Lady Eagles both suffered losses against the University of Santo Tomas (UST) and the University of the East (UE), respectively, at the Quadricentennial Pavilion in the UST. The round ended with the Blue Eagles bumping up their season score up to 6.5 while the Lady Eagles’ season score remains stagnant at 3.
Lady Eagles
The Lady Eagles were defeated by UE at a 0-4 score. Still winless in their campaign so far, the Lady Eagles failed to add to their overall season score.
On board one, Ana De Duque fell to UE’s Virgenie Ruaya as UE took a 0-1 lead.
Boards two and three had similar results, as Lady Eagles Minella Sandoval and Aryanne De Ocampo were defeated by Crystal Jade Werba and Cristhina Medenilla, bringing the round to a 0-3 score.
Team Captain Jasmine Principe took on Nicole Chu on the final board but dropped the last matchup, sending the Lady Eagles home before securing a win.
Blue Eagles
The Blue Eagles lost to UST at a final score of 0.5-3.5. Before the round ended, the Blue and White were able to add half a point to their season score as Team Captain Gavin Ong managed a draw against Christian Flores on board three.
The unfortunate results began on board one as Blue Eagle Lance Ting was defeated by Philip Uy. Boards two and four featured Ateneo’s Keefe Tan and Jolo Lat, who took on Hierry Manaloto and John Ablid, respectively. Tan and Lat, unfortunately, lost to their opponents as the ninth round came to a close.
“We pulled off a good fight today. Although we lost, we had pretty good games. I’m happy I was able to draw against Christian Flores, who I lost to last year. Lance also had an interesting match. Despite today’s loss, I’m still optimistic about tomorrow’s game against FEU,” said Ong.
The Blue and Lady Eagles’ next matchday is scheduled on Sunday, March 18, at the Quadricentennial Pavilion in UST. The Blue Eagles will face FEU while the Lady Eagles will take on UST in round 10 of UAAP Chess.
