CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Toledo Xignex Trojans served their revenge on a silver platter, beating the Sudeco-Manila Indios Bravos, 11.5-9.5, in their rematch in the ongoing Philippine Chess Association of the Philippines (PCAP) Wesley So Cup on Saturday, October 31, with Russian Grandmaster (GM) Aleksey Sorokin leading the charge.
Sorokin shone brightly for Toledo, beating Paulo Bersamina twice in their blitz and rapid round meetings at Board 2.
GM Rogelio Barcenilla Jr., meanwhile, settled for two draws against Yoseph Taher in the blitz and rapid rounds, while Woman FIDE Master (WFM) Cherry Ann Mejia also struggled to get a win after drawing twice against Shania Mae Mendoza at Board 3.
Despite this, National Master (NM) Cesar Mariano delivered when it mattered most, bouncing back from a blitz round loss to GM Rogelio Antonio Jr. with an upset win in their rapid round encounter.
Virgien Gil Ruaya also came through for Toledo, beating David Elorta at Board 6 in the rapid round after settling for a draw against him in the blitz round.
READ: Toledo Xignex Trojans split matches in PCAP Wesley So Cup
Near-sweep
The Sudeco-Manila Indios Bravos drew first blood by taking the blitz round, 4.5-2.5. However, Toledo turned the tables in the rapid round, scoring a 9-5 victory to eke out the 11.5-9.5 overall triumph and exact revenge for its September 30 loss to Manila.
The victory also shook up the Omega Division standings, allowing Toledo to close in on the league-leading Indios Bravos.
In its other match, Toledo dismantled the Bacolod Blitzers, 17-4, nearly sweeping the blitz round, 6-1, before dominating the rapid round, 11-3.
GM Barcenilla Jr., International Master (IM) Joel Banawa, WFM Mejia, NM Mariano, Diego Abraham Caparino, and Ruaya won their respective blitz matches against Thesius Benitez, Edsel Montoya, Eden Ting, Josevito Tapulgo, Ian Udani, and Eric Abanco.
READ: PCAP Wesley So Cup: Toledo Xignex Trojans split matches, slip to No. 2
Lone setback
Only IM Kim Steven Yap suffered a setback in the blitz round, losing to Rolando Andador.
Toledo continued its impressive showing in the rapid round, with GM Barcenilla, IM Banawa, WFM Mejia, Caparino, and IM Yap winning their respective matches. Ruaya was the only Trojan to lose, bowing to Abanco.
With the two victories, Toledo improved its record to 15 wins against four losses, keeping second place in the Omega Division standings. Manila remained on top with a 16-3 win-loss record.