Thursday, January 08, 2009 DCAA pins hopes on woodpushers By Marianne Saberon-Abalayan
HOPES are high for the Davao City Athletic Association (DCAA) to rule the elementary boys chess team event as it banners ace woodpushers John Ray Batucan and Austin Jacob Literatus to the Davao Regional Athletic Association (Davraa) Meet 2009 chess competition set on March 7 and 8 in Panabo City.
Batucan, a Vietnam Asean Age-Group Championships boys 12 twin gold medalist, will play board 1, while Literatus, a 2008 Shell National Youth Active Chess Championships Mindanao kiddies champion, will play board 2. Ricardo Murillo is coach.
Both players are the pride and joy of Don Juan dela Cruz Central Elementary School (DJDCCES) in Toril. They also composed the Davraa team that competed in the 2008 Palarong Pambansa in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan.
The DCAA elementary girls team, coached by Linda Ebol, is composed of Magallanes Elementary School's Starjen Candia and DJDCCES's Dhona Yngayo.
DCAA's secondary chessers, meanwhile, are no pushovers as the Oswald Zabala-coached boys team will parade the services of F. Bangoy National High School's Danilo Engay, Jr. and Mintal Comprehensive National High School's Wilbert Franco.
The girls team of coach Gelzon Arvin Coquilla will lean on veteran age groupers Nikki Erica of Davao Central College and Mary Israel Palero of the Holy Cross of Davao College.
The Davraa Meet is the qualifying event for the 2009 Palarong Pambansa set in Tacloban City in April.
Davraa reigning champion DCAA will field a complete delegation in all events to ensure its title-retention bid.
