USC-BED bares fangs, snatches Milo reg’l lead

Ilo-ilo City –  The University of San Carlos-Basic Education (USC-BED) Baby Warriors leaned on the brilliance of their chess and football players to snatch the lead in the penultimate day of the 20th Milo Little Olympics Regional Finals, here.

Manned by a skeletal workforce of just a hundred athletes, the two-time overall defending champions continue to defy odds and surprise the competition by grabbing the lead in the General Championship Points in both elementary and secondary divisions as of 7 p.m. last night.

The Baby Warriors pace the elementary race with 57 points after ruling chess and football.

The secondary green and gold Warriors on the other hand, lead the division with 32 points after topping boys and girls chess.
Maslog Elementary School of Danao City trails USC-BED after winning badminton worth 30 points followed by Jordan Central Elementary School of Guimaras with 25 points and Trinity Christian School of Bacolod City at third with 24 points.

“We’re confident that we’ll win the tournament because so far we performed well. We will do everything to defend our title even though we only have a few athletes,” said USC-BED’s chess coach Arnolito Cadiz.

Running second to the Baby Warriors in the secondary division was Southwestern University (SWU) Cobras which ruled the badminton event worth 30 points while Danao City’s Beatriz Durano Memorial National High School is running second with 22 points from its strong table tennis squads. Fourth and fifth placers were CPU and Trinity Christian School with identical 20 points.

FOOTBALL

An Abellana National School booter (right) loses control of the ball against a Central Philippine University player during the Milo Little Olympics Regional Finals. CPU won 1-0. (CDN PHOTO/ TONEE DESPOJO)

The Baby Warriors beat archrival, Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC), 1-0 in elementary football via penalty shoot-out courtesy of Carl Vincent Polizon.

The Baby Warriors are also in the finals of secondary boys tennis and elementary basketball.

USC-BED escaped Ateneo de Iloilo, 47-46 to advance to the title match against Saint Roberts Academy of Iloilo in elementary basketball played at the West Visayan State University (WVSU) Gym. Its boys lawn tennis squad bannered by the multi-titled John Godfrey Seno beat Monfort School of Aklan in the team event yesterday. They will play Hua Siong College at the CPU courts in today’s title match.

ATHLETICS
The Baby Warriors track and field stars also continued to stamp their class at the Oton National High School oval.

USC-BED’s secondary tracksters picked up four more gold medals courtesy of Mary Joy Loberanis (1,500m run); Stephen Pikit-pikit (triple jump and high jump) and Seth Abraham Pilapil (boys 200m run) to run their total to eight golds.

SHS-AdC’s Carmela Therese Dublin won two gold medals by dominating girls high jump and 200m run to rack up their gold tally to in secondary girls.

Talamban Elementary School dominated elementary athletics by harvesting six golds courtesy of Thea Alas (400m run and 400m hurdles) Krystelle Mea Leyson (high jump), Edd Adrian Sorongon (400m hurdles), Charity Celestia Celeste (200m run) and Anthony Ernest Mino (200m run).

Sabang Elementary School of Danao City also plucked four gold medals yesterday from Heirnreigh Peralta (longjump and 1,500m run), Chris Dominic Roca (400m run) and Francis Ian Papellero (triple jump).

SWIMMING  

Joel Martin Tobesa of Sacred Heart School- Ateneo anchors his school’s 200m freestyle relay team. (CDN PHOTO/ TONEE DESPOJO)

Cebuano swimmers also left their marks at the Central Philippine University (CPU) pool although Cebu swimming officials lamented the slow and erratic releasing of results.

Raven Faith Alcoseba of Talisay City Science High School won her fifth gold medal in secondary girls yesterday by ruling the 400m freestyle and 200m backstroke events. She won three gilts on Friday.

SHS-AdC’s Joshua Tobesa splashed his way to three gold medals and two silvers. He won the 50m butterfly, 100m butterfly and 50m freestyle races.

The remaining events will be played today to be followed by the awarding of individual and team winners at SM Iloilo.

The Milo National Finals is slated next month in Laguna.