THE UST Male Woodpushers climbed the upper half of the charts after scoring a breezy 3.5-0.5 win over National University (NU) in the ongoing UAAP Chess Tournament last August 30 at the Thomas Aquinas Research Center.
The victory catapulted the Male Woodpushers’ to joint second place with erstwhile league-leaders Far Eastern University. Both teams now sport identical 16.5-point aggregates at the end of the first round.
Board one contender Vic Villanueva outclassed NU’s Donn Fabian in 30 moves while Male Woodpushers Gerald Ferriol (board three) and Jude Fronda (board four) extracted the full point against Gerry Nudalo and Willard Turda, respectively. UST’s Patrick Florendo fell short of completing a sweep following a draw with Christian Cagada.
There are four boards in a match. A win in one board scores a point while a draw grants 0.5.
Earlier, the National Master Winston Silva-mentored team pulled off three straight 2-2 draws against De La Salle University last August 24, University of the East (UE) last August 23 and University of the Philippines (UP) last August 17.
Prior to these standoffs, UST dropped a 1-3 loss to Adamson University last August 16, six days after dominating FEU, 3-1. The Male Woodpushers kicked off the tournament with a 3-1 victory against Ateneo de Manila University last August 9.
Unlikely slump
The Lady Woodpushers meanwhile, remain locked in the championship freezer, as they continue to struggle despite edging NU, 2.5-1.5, last August 30.
Rohini Vergara facing Clarrisa BasBas in board one and Carina Lumacad tackling Angelique Dulay in board three scored a win each for UST. Geneline de Ramos halved the point with Joannah Saltorio in board two while Romelyn Guerra lost to Sonia Quiroz in board four.
“Mahaba pa ang tournament, kaso lamang na ang kalaban,” Lady Woodpushers mentor International Master Ronald Dableo told the Varsitarian. “Ang mga inaasahan kong pumalo, hindi pumapalo.”
Previously, UST absorbed a 0.5-3.5 shellacking from FEU last August 24. The Season 71 champions settled for a 2-2 truce with UE last August 16, after bowing to UP, 1.5-2.5, last August 10. The Lady Woodpushers now stand at fifth place with 11.5 points. A. A. Fantilagan and Ana Mae G. Roa
