Sta. Maria cops 5th Palaro gold

TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines – National Capital Region’s Rafael Sta. Maria splashed his way to a fifth gold medal, Calabarzon’s Delia Angela Cordero made it into the elite record-breakers’ club in grand fashion and Mimaropa’s Mervin Guarte exacted revenge at the tracks yesterday to highlight an action-packed Day 5 in the 2009 Palarong Pambansa at the Leyte Sports Development Center here.

Sta. Maria, 12, captured the elementary 100m fly gold in one minute, 4.89 seconds, then anchored the 200m freestyle relay team of Juan Carlo Miguel Reyes, Alberto Batungbakal and Jose Paolo Macasu to a record-setting feat of 1:55.35. It erased the 1:56.08 meet mark registered by NCR’s J Ventinilla, J. Reyes, J. Ventinilla and K. Claveria last year in Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

“I have now won five golds, maybe I can win some more,” said Sta. Maria, an incoming Grade 6 student at San Beda-Alabang who will also compete in 400m and 200m free and 100m and 200m fly in today’s final day of pool competitions.

Sta. Maria also topped the 50m fly and 100m free Wednesday and 400m medley relay Thursday.

More impressive was the 13-year-old Cordero, younger sister of SEA Games veteran Denjylyn, who broke the 11-year-old 100m fly mark of 1:07.25 by Central Visayas’ Lynette Ang in the 1998 Bacolod edition with a 1:06.00 clocking to claim her fourth gold.

NCR’s Hannah Dato also erased the same record with 1:06.66 for silver.

A day after he felt he was robbed of a victory by Calabarzon’s Salvador Garin, Jr. in a controversial 800m duel, Guarte, 17, this timegot back at his tormentor and ruled the 1,500m run in 4:07.94.

It was a sweet victory for Guarte, whose protest against Garin and teammate Dondon Cartabio who he claimed elbowed him in the 800m, was turned down by track officials.

Garin, who ended up snatching the 800m gold, finished second in 4:10.86 while Cartabio placed third in 4:13.18.

“He (Garin) elbowed me again but I didn’t let it bother me,” said Guarte, who also won the 5,000m, in Filipino. “What they did to me, I took it personally that’s why I gave it my all to win this event.”

Western Visayas continued to lord it over in athletics as Viena Mae Banebane and Josie Malacad pocketed two gold medals each.

Banebane ruled the 100m hurdles in 16.20 seconds and 400m in 59.22 while Malacad topped the 800m in 2:18.49 and 400m hurdles in 1:05.06.

Malacad later won in her favorite 1500m in 5:00.43 to dominate the event for the third straight year.

“I’m glad I won because this is my last Palaro,” said Malacad, who was recently recruited by Far Eastern U.

Another Western Visayas bet, Josie Montibon, took her second gold in elementary 1,500m in 5:04.53.

The Big City Bets, meanwhile, sustained their romp in the pool as they harvested 10 more gold medals to hike their total to 23 in both elementary and high school divisions.

Johansen Aguilar, who broke three meet marks for a three gold medal haul, towed the NCR bets to a fourth gold in 200m backstroke in 2:13.81, one of the five the defending overall champions won in the day.

Erwin Basa copped the 110m hurdles gold in 16.55 while Ralph Efraem Gesulgon snared the javelin gold in 50.57 to account for the other two victories by the perennial track and field power.

Basa won his gold in the absence of NCR hotshot Patrick Unso, who was disqualified after two false starts.

Raymond Maygay and Jarvin Debardo delivered two more gold medals for Cotabato in the 400m run and 400m hurdles where they clocked 50.48 and 58.26, respectively.

Elgen Altubar of Northern Mindanao fired 329 to rule archery’s 30m event, 274 in 50m, 603 in 1/2 fita and 87 in the Olympic round as he joined the quadruple gold medalists’ club.

Other archery winners were Mar Cris Antolino of Western Visayas (30m) and Zamboanga Peninsula’s Glenn Pangatungan (50m and 1/2 fita).

NCR scooped a pair of gold medals in women’s artistic gymnastics courtesy of Noelyn Figueroa in the individual event and the team of Figueroa, individual bronze medalist Yoseherich Maborang and Myla Rodriguez in the team event.

The Big City volley squad turned back a stubborn Ilocos side, 25-10, 19-25, 25-11.