STEPHEN Rome Pangilinan swept his last three matches to capture the juniors’ crown, while Michael Concio Jr. nipped Mark Jay Bacojo in the tiebreak to snare the kiddies’ plum in the Shell National Youth Active Chess Championship Southern Luzon leg at SM Batangas in Batangas City last Sunday.
Pangilinan sustained his impressive run in the last three rounds as the Philippine Science High School ace dismantled Dennis Gutierrez II, Brien Palasigue and Jethro Aquino to post an 8.5-point total in the 13-16 age category of the 25th staging of the annual event.
The top-seeded Daniel Quizon, who closed out with victories over Jarvey Labanda, Jesca Docena and Christopher Kis-ing, placed second with eight points. Kylen Joy Mordido of Dasmariñas National High School, who also placed fifth overall, was named top female player and will thus join Pangilinan and Quizon in the grand finals of the country’s longest talent-search sponsored by Pilipinas Shell.
Jonathan Jota, meanwhile, dominated the seniors division, finishing with 8.5 points and leading a 1-2-3 finish by the Lyceum bets in the 17-20 category of the event, which kicked off the five-stage regional circuit culminating in the grand finals in October at SM Mall of Asia in Pasay.
Maeleen Pastrano, Shell Tabangao Refinery Manufacturing Excellence Manager, graced the awards rites of the two-day, nine-round Swiss system tournament sanctioned by NCFP, which drew close to 350 participants.
Concio and Bacojo finished tied for first in the 7-12 side with eight points but the former, the spearhead of Dasmariñas National High in Cavite, took the crown with a superior tiebreak score. Bacojo, from San Miguel Elementary School, settled for second while Our Lady of Pilar’s Angele Biete took third place with 7.5 points.
Concio foiled Emerson dela Cruz and Jorge Delgado Jr. then drew with Biete while Bacojo defeated Jerlyn San Diego, Del Emerson dela Cruz and Robert Perez.
The top-ranked Jota, who led after six rounds, halved the point with Louie Alegria at resumption then ripped No. 3 Romulo Curioso Jr. and Spencer Real to post a huge 1.5-point win over Curioso and four others.
Curioso, Jhoemar Mendiogarin, Lawrence Magura, Rafael Dionisio of Univ. of Batangas, and Jesiah Mendoza all finished with seven points but Curioso and Mendiogarin took the next two spots after the tiebreak to complete Lyceum’s domination.
Joining the top two players in each division in the national finals slated from October 7-9 are the top finishers in the girls’ division, including Daren dela Cruz (kiddies) of Villa Nueva Memorial School, also in Dasmariñas, Cavite, Mordido (juniors) from Dasmariñas NHS, and Venice Vicente (seniors) from FEU Manila.
Daren dela Cruz and Mordido both won their last three matches to end up with seven points in the kiddies and juniors divisions while Vicente bucked her two losses in the last three rounds to finish with six points in seniors play.