Tag: Vol. LXXVIII

WHAT do Anna Nicole Smith, Paris Hilton, Britney Spears and Kris Aquino have in common?

They are all victims of what Jeff Jarvis of the City University of New York said as the “one-size-fits-all” disease plaguing the media.

Almost every media outfit is covering the death of Anna Nicole Smith, dubbed as the “poor man’s Marilyn Monroe,” and Kris Aquino’s shaky marriage with James Yap, who allegedly had an affair with a receptionist of the Belo beauty clinic.

LACK OF composure may be the story behind the UAAP Champions UST Tigresses’ so-so start in the ongoing Home and Away Invitational League (HAIL). They ended the eliminations with a 9-2 win-loss slate, good for only third place behind Season 69 bridesmaids Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws and De La Salle University Lady Archers.

UST ended the first round on a positve note with a thrilling 59-55 win over the College of St. Benilde Lady Blazers last Feb. 18 at the CSB Gym.

YEARNING for redemption against their perennial tormentor, the UST Golden Sox turned to ace pitcher Jon-Jon Robles.

And the explosive southpaw hurler responded superbly, casting a no-hit, no-run spell over defending champion University of the Philippines (UP) in the first four innings of their 16-5 conquest of the Maroons to force a deciding Game 2 in the semifinals of the UAAP baseball tournament last Feb. 22 at the Rizal Memorial Ballpark.

WITH the stigma of a dismal fourth-place finish last year, the UST Male Fencers redeemed themselves this year by finishing second with a 2-1-2 gold-silver-bronze medal tally in the UAAP Fencing tournament last Feb. 11-12 at the Blue Eagle Gym in Quezon City.

“We were able to accomplish this feat because the players are helping each other to become better,” UST epee coach Arman Bernal told the Varsitarian.

THE UST Shuttlecockers traversed different paths in their debut games in the UAAP Season 69 Badminton hostilities last Feb. 17-18 at Club Sixfifty in Quezon City.

It was a smooth-sailing campaign for the Lady Shuttlecockers who easily caught fire to defeat Adamson University in a best-of-five showdown, 3-2. UST sophomore stalwart Jem Vicencio displayed relentless attacks against Emily Gali for a 21-11, 21-8 triumph. UST rookie Jackilyn Cudia, however, fell short of experience and bowed down to Juvy Vallarta, 16-21, 19-21.

UST LADY Woodpushers head coach and International Master (IM) Ronald Dableo was accused by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) of game-fixing last year’s Tanauan City Open and Malaysian Open.

NCFP executive director Samuel Estimo made the accusation last Jan. 11, saying that Dableo and IM Darwin Laylo of intentionally dropping their games against eventual winner IM Chito Garma. Dableo also purportedly dropped his match against Vietnamese Grand Master (GM) Dao Thien Hai, in the Malaysian Open, according to Estimo.

THE UST Taekwondo team carved a modest finish in a tournament dominated by the country’s finest jins.

Registering two golds and seven silvers, the perennial UAAP titlists copped second-place over-all in the seniors division of the 2007 Smart-Petron Carlos Palanca, Jr. Philippine Taekwondo Championships last Feb. 4 at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.

HAMPERED by a cold start, the UST Golden Booters fought their heart out and played the game of their lives to buck a scoreless first half and outsteady surprise finalist Far Eastern University (FEU), 4-2, and regain the UAAP men’s football crown via a nerve-wracking penalty shoot-out last Feb. 18 at the Ateneo Erenchun Field.

Team captain Arman Esteben sent home the marginal goal for the Golden Booters by unleashing a razor-sharp floater that grazed through the rightmost portion of the net to finally end UST’s six-year title drought in the discipline.

INEXPERIENCE is not a factor, after all.

This the rookie-laden UST Tennis teams proved in convincing fashion as they finally ditched their perennial bridesmaid tag with a methodical sweep of the UAAP Tennis titles last Feb. 4 at the Rizal Racket Club in Pasig City.

Season 69 co-Rookies of the Year Ryan Repunte and James Cañete delivered the exclamation in the Male Tennisters’ resounding title surge as they outshone their singles rivals from the veteran-powered University of the Philippines (UP) en route to a title-clinching 3-0 team victory.

A DECADE of longing to regain their lost UAAP supremacy proved to be long enough for the UST Lady Spikers as they made mincemeat of the their highly-touted rival Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws in an emphatic 25-11, 25-22, 25-19 title-clinching victory before a frenzied crowd last Feb.21 at the Blue Eagle Gym.

Except for a few possessions in the second set, UST dictated the tempo for most of the game as typified by its balanced scoring attack of down-the-line hits that greatly punctured FEU’s defense.