USPF to compete in UniGames

The University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF) Panthers will be strutting their wares in the athletic and volleyball events of the 11th National University Games to be held in Bacolod City on Oct. 23-29.

The campaign of the Panthers will be anchored by National Juniors Open 110-meter hurdles champion Harren Melendez, who also won the gold medal in the recently concluded athletic events of the 2006 Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI).

Melendez will be joined by fellow CESAFI gold medallist Mary Rose Arman for the 1,500m, 3,000m and 5,000m, Ryancel Ledamo for the 400m and 800m, Andy Surban for javelin throw, Mendel Lopez and Eugene Delposo for the 5,000m.

They accompanied by Edward Beronia as head coach and John Ronald Arnejo as assistant coach.

Aside from the athletics team, the women's volleyball team will also be joining in the event under coach Jordan Paca.

The Lady Panthers finished silver to University of San Jose-Recoletos in the 2006 CESAFI volleyball tournament.

Meanwhile, 11 will be played in the 11th National University Games with the University of St. La Salle to host the men and women's chess, lawn tennis, swimming, table tennis, volleyball and basketball as well as sepak takraw and men's football.

The West Negros College Gym will also stage some of the basketball games, while the University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos field will be used as a venue for a number of football matches.

The Panaad Oval will be used for the athletics competitions, while Riverside College is the official playing venue for the men and women's badminton and taekwondo tournaments.

UniGames coordinator Roger Banzuela said that this will be the ninth time that USLS will host majority of the events of the school-based meet in the collegiate level.

De La Salle-Dasmariñas and Dumaguete City-based Foundation University are the two other schools that have hosted the annual hostilities, Banzuela, who is also the USLS sports director, said.

Dumaguete will most probably be the 2007 host, while University of the Philippines-Diliman will stage the 2008 UniGames, he added.

Reigning NOPSSCEA champion West Negros College made history last year by becoming the first Visayas-based squad to bring home the crown in the men's basketball tournament of the UniGames.

The Freddie Lazarito-mentored USLS booters also made noise in 2005 with back-to-back titles, while Far Eastern University became the 'winningest' school for the second straight year.

Banzuela said he planed in Manila recently to meet with the Sun Cellular officials, asking the company to become the major sponsor of the event.