Girls deliver six golds in Day 3

Below standard. Stephen Pekitpekit of Region 7 clears the bar in high jump and lands in sixth place. (SunStar Photo/Alex Badayos)
Below standard. Stephen Pekitpekit of Region 7 clears the bar in high jump and lands in sixth place. (SunStar Photo/Alex Badayos)

POWERED by their female athletes, the Central Visayas Regional Association (Cviraa) took a big stride and recorded its best medal haul on Day 3 of the 61st Palarong Pambansa in Ilocos Sur.

The female athletes showed accuracy in archery, chemistry in table tennis, speed in athletics, and grace in gymnastics to lead the third day for Cviraa, which now has 11 gold medals, four silvers, and 10 bronzes in the unofficial overall medal tally as of 6 p.m. Wednesday. (The partial official tally from DepEd has Cviraa at 8-4-8.)

Riza Jane Vallente, the daughter of a 1990 Palarong Pambansa bronze medalist, showed that talent runs in the blood as she won her third straight title in the secondary girls’ 400-meter hurdles at the Quirino Stadium.

Vallente clocked 1 minute and 1.45 seconds to beat Bernalyn Bejoy of Region 6 by 43 milliseconds. Crystal Mae Vibal of Region 5 finished third in 1:04.1 to take the bronze medal.

“This win is for my family who’s always with me every time I compete, starting from the division meet until the Palarong Pambansa,” said Vallente, whose mother won the bronze medal in the 1,500m event of the 1990 Palarong Pambansa.

With her feat, Vallente received offers from the universities in Manila but she has already decided to finish her last playing year with Region 7 before making a decision.

“I want her to finish high school first. She has one more year. The scholarship is really a big help to us because it’s her chance to be in a good university for college,” Vallente’s mother, Rosario, said in Cebuano.

The student of La Union National High School has received offers from University of the Philippines (UP), National University, and De la Salle University.

It was a story of siblings that was the highlight in table tennis. Kathlyn and Shairah Gabisay captured the gold medal in the secondary girls’ table tennis at the Philippine Science High School in San Ildefonso, Ilocos Sur.

It was the first time that the sisters bagged a gold medal in this national sporting meet.

The 16-year-old Kathlyn and 12-year-old Shairah of Danao City downed Calabarzon, 3-2, in the championship round. It’s the first time that the siblings have paired up in the Palarong Pambansa, and probably the last time.

Kathlyn will be following in the footsteps of her older sister, Sherlyn Love, who’s playing for the University of Sto. Tomas (UST).

“I’ll be going to Manila in the next school year at Adamson University. I’m happy that I was able to team up with my younger sister to represent Region 7 this year,” said Kathlyn.

The younger Gabisay said that being sisters was an advantage for them since they already know each other and their game tendencies.

“We were really aiming for this. It’s one of our sister goals,” said the two Gabisays.

In archery, Phoebe Nicole Amistoso snared her third gold medal in the girls’ 50m, a day after after winning the 30m and 40m the other day at the San Ildefonso, Ilocos Sur.

Amistoso scored 330 points in the 50m to win her third gold medal. She will still play in the 60m today.

Euricka Soronio, 12, of University of Visayas (UV) chipped in another gold medal after winning the WAG girls’ elementary at the Sta. Maria Municipal Gym.

The boys’ elementary table tennis team, composed of Jebb Jerwin Datahan, Daniel Butar, Andrie Caballes and John Nino Gapol, added gold medal after beating Region 11. The National Capital Region placed third.

Johann Abelard Concepcion of Cebu City also won gold medal in the secondary boys’ poomsae Category A at the Sto. Dominggo Municipal Gym.

Those who have a shot for the gold medal today are Princess Jean Nalzaro in the 100m hurdles, Gimar Magdalino in the 5,000m, Vallente 400m and Genesis Millanes in pole vault.

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