USJ-R secondary girls volleyball team. | By Glendale Rosal
CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Cebu City Niños asserted their dominance in the Central Visayas Regional Athletic Association (CVIRAA) ball games as the meet wrapped up on Thursday, May 9, here in Cebu City.
Cebu City’s secondary boys and girls volleyball teams, represented by the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Jaguars and the University of the Visayas’ secondary boys basketball squad, respectively, put the icing on the cake on the final day of the meet by winning the gold medals in their respective competitions on Thursday.
With their gold medal-clinching victories, these teams will represent Region 7 or Central Visayas in the upcoming Palarong Pambansa in July, hosted in their backyard—Cebu City.
At the USJ-R Basak Campus, the Jaguars flexed their muscles in their home court by topping the secondary girls’ and boys’ competitions.
USJ-R’s volleyball teams, both defending champions of the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (Cesafi), defeated Tanjay City and Mandaue City’s Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) Magis Eagles in the girls’ and boys’ divisions, respectively.
Their girls’ team defeated Tanjay City in three straight sets, 25-14, 25-22, and 25-9, to clinch the gold medal. Meanwhile, their boys’ team blanked the Magis Eagles of Mandaue City, 25-15, 25-14, and 25-12, in their gold medal match.
It was a fitting comeback for USJ-R after missing the Cebu City Olympics and CVIRAA last year due to changes in the university’s administration.
“Pag 1994 nakaduwa na mi sa Palarong Pambansa diri sa Cebu City. San Jose gihapon akong gi dala ato. Before that, naka coach na pud ko sa previous Palarong Pambansa. Core team gihapon sa San Jose pero naa mi pick-up,” said USJ-R’s head coach Roldan Potot.
He revealed that they won silver in the boys’ and bronze in the girls’ categories in that Palarong Pambansa.
This time, he and his squads are eyeing the gold medal with all the home court advantage they have since they will host the Palarong Pambansa volleyball competition at the same venue.
“Advantage in a sense ang venue ug ang crowd, pero sa team gyud naa gyud pang trabahuon kay solid man gud, dili mi maka pick up unlike before. Morale boosting gyud ari duwaon sa ato, unya diri pa gyud sa among korte, ari mi mag practice. Pero we will see among paningkamotan modaog. Panington gyud sila ug bugbog,” Potot said.
However, he needs to double their efforts in training for them to fully prepare against powerhouses like Bacolod City, National Capital Region (NCR), and Calabarzon in the Palarong Pambansa since many of his secondary girls’ players are reserves in Cesafi.
“Kani nga team dili ni mao ang team nidaog sa Cesafi kay naa mga na cut-off nga players sa age. Mga back-up players ni nako sila. Especially usa ra among setter, gamay pa gyud, sa front lang daan, mas dako ug trabahuonon,” said Potot.
USJ-R secondary boys volleyball team. | By Glendale Rosal
BABY LANCERS RULE THE HARDCOURT
At the University of San Carlos (USC) Main Campus gymnasium, the UV Baby Lancers manhandled Cebu Province, represented by Carmen National High School, 102-74, in their championship game.
For multi-titled head coach of UV, Jun Pepito, competing in Palarong Pambansa since 1990, but never capturing the gold medal, now that the Palarong Pambansa will be happening in Cebu City, he sees a better chance to finally win it.
“Silver ra gyud mi kutob. Mao na among paninguhaon modaog ug gold kay anhi duwaon sa Cebu ang Palaro. Dako kaayo ang homecourt advantage, paninguhaon gyud namo nga modaog mi,” said Pepito.
Fellow coach Ronald Bucao said that they will display the same tenacity and heart they showed in CVIRAA in the upcoming Palarong Pambansa.
UV Baby Lancers basketball team. | By Glendale Rosal
“Sa amo-a kung unsa among gipakita sa CVIRAA, kung unsa sacrifices mao among buhaton gihapon. Dili mi mo kumpyansa. Every time moduwa sila, all out gyud ug naa gyud heart,” said Bucao.
UV put on a stunning performance before manhandling Cebu Province after they upset the defending champions and Palarong Pambansa gold medalists, the Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) of Mandaue City, 95-69, in the semifinals.
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