Top netters among PNG casualties; Youth team dominates cycling

MANILA, Philippines - The LBC-MVP Sports Foundation’s national youth team of Rustom Lim, Ronald Oranza and Denver Casayuran swept all the medals in the 151.4km road race to dominate cycling in the PSC-POC Philippine National Games in Tarlac City yesterday.

The troika joined the early eight-man breakaway group before the 20-year-old Lim, a bronze medalist in the Asian Juniors Championship in India early this year, struck in the final 2kms to capture the gold medal in three hours 59 minutes, 48.2 seconds.

Oranza, who made an impressive top three finish in this year’s Ronda Pilipinas, took the silver in 4:00.30.9 while Casayuran clocked 4:00.32.4 for the bronze.

Their 1-2-3 finish is likewise tipped to bolster their bid to make it to the national team vying in this year’s SEA Games in Myanmar.

Over at the Philsports Complex in Pasig, Mervin Guarte, a 20-year-old multiple gold medal winner in the NCAA, posted the best time in the 800 meters in yesterday’s heats to lead today’s finalists in the event.

“I haven’t really trained fully but I will prepare full blast next month and hopefully win myself a gold medal in the SEAG,” said Guarte, a senior hotel and restaurant management student who won the silver in both the 800m and 1,500m races in the 2011 SEAG in Palembang, Indonesia.

At the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center, Edlyn Balanga, back home for good after a long stay in Spain, stunned second seed Clarice Patrimonio, 6-4, 7-6(4), to barge into the women’s tennis finals.

The 25-year-old Balanga hopes to complete her Cinderella finish as she slugs it out with top pick Marian Jade Capadocia, who turned back Roxanne Resma, 7-6 (4), 6-0, in the other semis duel.

Fil-Italian Marc Reyes also provided the day’s other shocker when he booted out top seed Johnny Arcilla, 6-3, 6-2, to advance to the semis against No. 3 PJ Tierro, who trounced Rubellar Ruel, 6-0, 3-6, 10-4, in men’s tennis.

Rolando Ruel, who grounded Reynaldo Mariano, 6-2, 7-6 (4), and Elderberto Anasta, who ousted Arce Maino, 6-4, 6-4, dispute the other finals berth.

The rest of the national team mainstays, however, including hammer thrower Arnel Ferrera and javelin thrower Danilo Fresnido, stamped their class in their respective events.

Ferrera heaved to a distance of  60.20m, besting his 6.19-m performance in Palembang where he netted a silver behind eventual gold medalist Thai Tantipong Petchaiya’s 61.46.

Fresnido threw over a 66.15m distance, near the 66.27m that earned him a bronze in Indonesia.

Fresnido, now 40 years old, said this could be his last SEAG.

“This could be my last,” said Fresnido, who won the gold medals in the Vietnam, Malaysia and Laos SEAGs. 

Far Eastern U’s Janray Ubas tried but failed to make the 2.08m standard.  He managed only 2.06m that was at least good for the gold in the men’s high jump.

Curiously, the 20-year-old Ubas, discovered in the 2006 Koronadal Palarong Pambansa as a long jumper, went straight to try 2.10m instead of the 2.08 standard and miserably failed to complete it.

“I didn’t know,” said Ubas, set to participate in long jump, javelin, pole vault, triple jump and decathlon.

In chess at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, Olympiad veteran Grandmaster Joey Antonio ended up tied with international masters Ronald Dableo and Jan Emmanuel Garcia on top with six points apiece but emerged with the best tiebreak score of 34 against Dableo and Garcia’s 30.5 and 28, respectively, to snare the gold in the rapid event.

GM Eugene Torre finished in the top 10, which included GM John Paul Gomez and World Cup-bound GM Mark Paragua.

Jan Jodilyn Fronda reigned supreme in women’s rapid event with six points while Bernadette Galas and Loreshyl Cuizon, who had 5.5 points apiece, settled for silver and bronze, respectively.

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