Friday, May 04, 2007 Salgados, Honculada join top-board matches
MANDALUYONG CITY -- Cagayan de Oro's Lennon Hart Salgados, 13, and Kenneth Norman Honculada, 9, fashioned out easy victories Thursday morning to stay in contention for the Asean/World Youth slots at stake in the 2007 National Age-Group chess championship here at the 5th Floor, Entertainment Hall of the Market Place Shopping Center.
Salgados of Corpus Christi School bluffed Davao City's Ademar Toleran Jr. with a nice trick that won for him a Bishop en prise, while Honculada of Xavier University Grade School managed to create unmolested passed pawns to force the resignation of his Manila-based foe in only 19 moves of a Center Counter game.
"Nanga-hanging iyang pawns. Sige lang ko'g kaon," said the 10-under boys bet Honculada whose lone defeat came in the opening round against a virtually unknown opponent.
"Medyo nabag-ohan lang tingali siya adto kay ang nakapilde sa iya wala na may daug-daug in the succeeding rounds," Kenneth's father, Lito, told Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro.
Now Salgados, fresh from campaigning in the 2007 Palarong Pambansa in Koronadal City, South Cotabato, climbs to board 4 in the talent-packed 14-under boys rivalry topbilled by the likes of Palaro champion Haridas Pascua and the dangerous Laceste brothers.
Honculada, on the other hand, improves at board 5 with still four more rounds to go.
Both Salgados and Honculada were having the disadvantage of handling with the black pieces in their thrilling matches with Steven Arnold Teves and John Lawrence Concepcion, respectively.
"Delikado na ang draw sa last four rounds. Kelangan na'ng pumokpok ng pumokpok kung gusto n'yang mag-kampeyon," was the advise of engineer Ric Paragua, father of Grandmaster Mark Paragua, to the upset-conscious Salgados.
CDO's 12-under girls entry Alyssa Ysaiah Jamaca of West City Central School in Carmen dropped two-straight matches, even as Anotonio Chavez Jr. of City High (CDO-NHS) finally snapped his three-game losing streak with an unexpected triumph over Anthony Tamayo on board 19.
"Grabe, tsamba pa gyod akong pagdaug kay losing na sab ko nasayop lang iyang Queen sacrifice kay naa pay sagang," gasped Chavez who vowed to seek revenge in the National Juniors scheduled to start on May 6 at same venue.
Meanwhile, Shell Petronas National Chess Coordinator Alex Dinoy officially announced that there will be another episode of the long-running Shell Youth Active tourney nationwide starting with the NCR-Manila eliminations in June.
The Visayas legs are set in Iloilo on August 18-19 and Cebu City on September 1-2. The Mindanao legs will be on September 15-16 in Davao and September 29-30 in Zamboanga.
The Shell chess organizers also prepare some P200,000 budget for the so-called Battle of Champions to be contested by all Shell Active Grandfinals champions (kiddies and juniors) in the past including Grandmasters Nelson Mariano II and Mark Paragua.
"Lalong pinaganda ang Shell event this year with the inclusion of the Battle of Champions as major highlight," Dinoy told Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro.
