Aparri crushes Viet, faces old foe in semis

ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia – Alice Kate Aparri relied on her experience and ring savvy to fend off a gritty Tuyet Mai Nguyen Thi of Vietnam, 25-14, and join compatriot Nesthy Petecio in the semifinal round of the sixth Asian Women’s Boxing Championships here Thursday.

Although the final tally appeared lopsided for the Baguio native, it was actually an action-packed affair with the game Vietnamese slugging it out with Aparri, trailing by just two after the first round, 5-3. But the ABAP-PLDT team mainstay asserted her might in the second, padding her lead to 12-6 before closing out the third at 17-10 en route to victory.

Aparri’s win thus made it two out of three for the PLDT-ABAP national team in the semifinals of the tournament set Saturday.

“We can’t take anything for granted. Although two of our three boxers are in the semis, the road to the finals is anything but rosy,” said delegation head and ABAP executive director Ed Picson.

In fact, Aparri will be taking on a rival she hasn’t beaten in three faceoffs.

“Alice faces the revered Mery Kom, and this is going to be their fourth meeting over the years. Alice has yet to beat her, but she feels the time has come,” she added.

Petecio, meanwhile, will also have her hands full against another skilled boxer, Keija Luo of China.

Picson said the girls are inspired by the fact that ABAP president Ricky Vargas has been monitoring developments in Mongolia and has been sending “encouraging words” for the boxers.

The team’s coaching staff is headed by national head coach Pat Gaspi and includes women’s team coaches Mitchel Martinez and Violito Payla.