C de Oro leg winners pace Shell chess grand finals

MANILA, Philippines - Jerwell Andoy and Felix Balbona, who topped their respective divisions in the Cagayan de Oro leg elims, took charge after five rounds of the upset-marred 18th Shell National Youth Active Chess Championship grand finals which got under way Saturday at SM Megamall Event Center in Mandaluyong City.

Andoy, the seventh-ranked bet from Jose Maria College-Davao, upended No. 2 Sheider Nebato in the third round then turned back No. 6 Adrian Perez but lost to fourth seed McDominique Lagula to fall into a three-way with his tormentor and Mari Joseph Turqueza with four points halfway through the nine-round championship.

The No. 8 Turqueza, winner of the NCR elims from La Salle, stunned top seed Kritz Albelar in the second round then upset No. 3 Yves Fiel in the fifth to boost his title drive in the tournament which gathered the top players from the nationwide eight-leg elims.

Lagula bounced back from a first round upset loss to No. 16 Jester Andoy as the FEU-FERN mainstay swept his next four games to remain in the hunt for the 20-and-under crown.