Cesafi overturns Baby Panthers’ win, suspends player for alleged moonlighting outside league
The USP-F Baby Panthers players and coaching staff during their game in the Cesafi. | Cesafi photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (Cesafi) has forfeited the win of the University of Southern Philippines-Foundation (USP-F) Baby Panthers against the Don Bosco Technology Center (DBTC) Greywolves in the high school basketball that happened last October 8, 2023 at the Cebu Coliseum.
This was after Cesafi officials headed by Deputy Commissioners Atty. Boyet Velez and Danny Duran and CESAFI Commissioner Felix Tiukinhoy found out during their investigation that one of USP-F’s players played in a non-sanctioned tournament of both his school and Cesafi’s.
The Baby Panthers won their October 8 game against the Greywolves, 99-60, which supposedly was their first win in the tournament.
However, the Baby Panthers are now sitting at the bottom of the Cesafi team standings after the decision was announced on Friday, October 20, 2023.
“Upon the recommendations of deputy commissioners Atty. Boyet Velez and Danny Duran who conducted the investigation, CESAFI Commissioner Felix O. Tiukinhoy forfeited the game won by USPF Baby Panthers over DBTC Greywolves last October 8, 2023 in a decision dated October 14, 2023 due to the violation of one of the former’s student-athlete by playing in another basketball tournament while the basketball season of CESAFI is still ongoing, a violation to the CESAFI rules and regulations,” Cesafi officials said in a statement.
Worse, the USP-F player will be suspended for the rest of the season.
Cesafi, however, didn’t disclose the identity of the player.
On the other hand, the decision put the Greywolves into the winning column. This served as their first win in the tournament after five games.
DBTC now has a chance to grab their second win, but they need to topple the undefeated University of Cebu Lapu-Lapu Mandaue (UCLM) Webmasters in their game on Saturday, Oct. 21, at 12:30 p.m. at the Cebu Coliseum.
The Webmasters are currently leading the Cesafi team standings with a 5-0 record.
Meanwhile, USP-F will go up against the Cebu Institute of Technology-University (CIT-U) Wildkittens in the other high school game at 2 p.m.
Cesafi has been very strict when it comes to players who secretly play in outside leagues, including those that aren’t sanctioned by their schools or Cesafi.
This is to prevent the players from getting injured which may jeopardize not just themselves, but also their school that is campaigning in Cesafi.
This kind of decision from Cesafi isn’t new after Eluid ‘Eloy’ Poligrates was slapped with a lifetime ban in 2013. Poligrates, now a commercial player, suited up for the Southwestern University Cobras during that time.
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