Ngui Palaro best with 7 golds

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan, Philippines  – Axel Toni Ngui racked up two more gold medals, including in his pet 200m free, to emerge the Most Outstanding Athlete while Maureen Emily Schrijvers crowned herself as queen of the tracks as the National Capital Region poised to annex its eighth straight secondary overall crown in the Palarong Pambansa here yesterday.

Ngui, winner of five golds heading to the final day of swim competitions, dominated the 200m free and led his team of Joseph Ventinilla, Samuel Ongjoco and Ralph Kevin Claveria to the 400m free relay gold to clinch the coveted individual honors in the week-long sportsfest at the Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center.

The 18-year-old Ngui ruled the 100m and 400m free and 100m back and 400m medley relay in the first three days of this event organized by Philippine Swim League in the most dominating performance in Palaro in recent years.

“I’m glad I achieved my target of seven gold medals, I’m on cloud nine,” said Ngui, a Life Science student at Ateneo who dreams to become a doctor someday.

Not to be outdone, Palaro poster girl Schrijvers completed a sprint double as she dominated the 200m dash with a 25.6-second clocking for her fifth gold medal.

The 16-year-old Schrijvers, a Philippine-born Belgian-Chinese, topped the century dash earlier then re-set the high jump mark before powering NCR’s 4x100m and 4x400m relay teams to victory to emerge the best performing athlete in centerpiece track and field.

“It’s an amazing feeling,” said Schrijvers.

Catherine Bondad, a 13-year-old San Beda-Alabang freshman and former two-time Most Outstanding Athlete in the women’s side, came from behind to beat teammate Delia Cordero, 16, in the 200m and then anchored Paula Cavanan, Claire Anne Galang and Thea Caluma to the 400m freestyle win to finish with six golds.

Cordero, a product of the Diliman Preparatory School swim program under former Sen. Nikki Coseteng, reigned supreme in the 100m and 200m butterfly, 200m individual medley and 200m medley relay team but failed in her bid for a sixth mint with a loss to Bondad.

Raissa Gavino, meanwhile, carried NCR’s elementary squad by topping the 100m breast to emerge the most bemedalled athlete in the grade school level with six golds.

Joshua Benzi Yang also won his fourth gold by powering the NCR team of Dominic Buhain, Joshua Taleon and Maurice Sacho Ilustre to victory in the 400m free.

Other individual golden winners at the pool were Central Luzon’s Rafael Barreto (elem 50m free), NCR’s Regina Castrillo (elem 50m free), NCR’s Joshua Taleon (elem 100m breaststroke), NCR’s Alberto Batungbacal (secondary 100m breaststroke) and NCR’s Kristina Bartolome (secondary girls 100m breaststroke).

Also sharing the spotlight was barefoot runner Janeza Mie Sustituedo of Western Visayas, who set a new record in the high school level after her elementary marks were reset.

Sustituedo, a first year high school student at Sun Yat Sen in Iloilo, clocked 10 minutes, 34.1 seconds to rip the 10.40.6 mark in the 3,000m set by Cagayan Valley’s Mary Jane Campos in the millenium edition of the event in Bacolod.

It came a day after her elementary 1,500m record of 4:53.10 she registered last year in Dapitan, Zamboanga del Norte, was eclipsed by Northern Mindanao’s Jie Ann Calis with a 4:48.9 clocking.

Western Visayas, for its part, dominated the track as Joycie Beranio topped the elementary girls 200m in 27.5 seconds to complete her own version of a sprint double.

NCR’s Emmanuel Gutierrez and Central Luzon’s Terrence Carlo Tongo came through with their first Palaro golds as they ruled the elementary and secondary 200m with times of 25.4 and 23.2, respectively.

In ballgames, it was also an all-NCR show.

The boys team, represented by UAAP high school champion University of the East, turned back Calabarzon, 25-18, 25-19, while its girls’ squad, bannered by the Colegio de San Agustin core, turned back Central Visayas, 25-12, 18-25, 25-20, to  barge into the gold medal round in volleyball.

NCR will square off with Central Visayas, which bested Central Luzon, 25-19, 28-26, for the boys gold and Western Visayas, a 22-25, 25-6, 25-17 winner over Northern Mindanao, for the girls mint.

NCR, represented by back-to-back UAAP titlist Far Eastern U, blanked Bicol, 7-0, to barge into the football finals against defending champion Central Visayas.

“They’re the defending champions so it’s hard to say but if we play the attack-football that we want to, we’ll have a chance,” said NCR coach Vincent Santos, member of the Loyola Meralco Sparks’ coaching staff under Korean Kim Chul Su, who is FEU training director.

Alex Rayos Jr. and Amanni Aguinaldo each scored a brace to power the NCR booters to the lopsided win while Central Visayas, which brought the core of Don Bosco Cebu, drew strength from a double by striker Jay Arrizabal to post the win.

In elementary basketball, NCR, which bowled over its last four opponents with an average winning margin of 50 points, dropped Western Visayas, 77-41, to advance to the finals.

In gymnastics, NCR continued to stamp its class as Arielle Nichole Orella, Jlligyn Gerandoy and Princess Joy Flores completed a 1-2-3 finish in the secondary individual all-around event as well as the team event of rhythmic gymnastics.

Orella tallied 65.613, Gerandoy 59.359 and Flores 58.999 to sweep the gold, silver and bronze medals and then combined for 183.971 in the team event to beat Central Visayas’ 153.100 and Ilocos’ 131.653.

In table tennis, Central Visayas’ Lemuel Agbon, Jean Philippe Honoridez, Val Stephen Jaca and Dannel Jay Tormis and Western Visayas’ Emy Rose Dael, Rose Jean Fadol, Beverly Paulma and Shamiela Pineda topped the secondary team events.

The elementary boys and girls team golds went to Northern Mindanao’s Kyneshi and Princess Jan Draug, Maryfhel Senolos and Ricca Joy Vergara and Calabarzon’s Odree Lime Maladia, Olshen Mhenard Obal, Carl Fritz Victorio and John Robert Villasanta.