THE UST Male Woodpushers settled for a 2-2 stalemate against the second-seeded Ateneo Blue Eagles to start their second-stage campaign at the FEU Tech Gym on Sunday, Nov. 5.
Chester Reyes opened the day for UST with a 39-move thrashing of Ateneo’s Khalil Kis-Ing and his Closed Sicilian Defense.
However, reigning MVP Julius Gonzales suffered his first defeat, faltering to Tristan Cervero’s English Opening in 48 moves.
Melito Ocsan Jr. gave UST a 2-1 advantage in Board 2 after overpowering National Master Jasper Faeldonia and his Queen’s Pawn Opening in 52 moves.
Mark Daluz gave a valiant effort to snag the overall win for UST but he eventually succumbed to Paull Llanilo in 73 moves.
The Male Woodpushers remain at the top of the standings with 10 match points, while the Ateneo Blue Eagles sit in second place with eight match points.
“Leading pa din naman kami so maintain lang namin kahit one point lang nakuha namin today, mataas pa din lamang namin sa ibang teams,” UST head coach Ronald Dableo told the Varsitarian.
In the women’s division, the UST Lady Woodpushers’ woes continued after being dominated for the second time by the all-National Masters FEU Lady Tamaraws, 4-0.
Janelle Dingding struggled in her debut after falling to FEU’s Vic Derotas in 32 moves, while Josemier Panol and Princes Oncita wavered against Lady Tamaraws Mary Tan and Mhage Sebastian in 50 and 28 moves, respectively.
FEU’s Bea Mendoza outlasted Rohanisa Buto in 52 moves to complete the sweep.
Meanwhile, the UST Junior Lady Woodpushers failed to go on top of the standings after yielding to the National University Nazareth School, 3.5-.5.
Nathalie Liscano was the only bright spot for UST as she forced a draw, while Precious Yecla, Faith Tabungar, and Mecel Gadut were bested by their NU foes.
The UST Male Woodpushers and Lady Woodpushers will next face the UP Fighting Maroons and the Ateneo Blue Eagles, respectively, at the same venue on Saturday, Nov. 11, at 1 p.m.
