THE University of San Carlos (USC) ladies’ futsal team will gun for the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. crown via the short route as it takes on the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) and the Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu on Feb. 10 at the USC gym.
USC, which lost in the finals to Ateneo last year, is the only undefeated team in the tournament, having won its first six games. If it completes a sweep, it will automatically be declared the champion.
USC got its sixth win with an 8-0 blanking of USPF on Saturday, while Ateneo also flexed its muscles with a 15-0 rout of guest team Sisters of Mary School Girlstown.
“It’s only USC that can compete with USC. USPF also have good players but they are still very young,” tournament director Francis Ramirez said in Cebuano.
The futsal event, a demo sport in the Cesafi for the second straight year, pits high school teams against college teams. USC is the only college team in the tournament, hence the one-sided victories.
USC already beat USJ-R on the first day, 8-0, and also handed Ateneo its first loss, 5-2. If Ateneo manages to hold USC to a draw or even beat the No. 1 team, the two will play in the final. If USC wins, it will be the champion, while Ateneo, which has a 5-1 record, will get the second spot.
Next year, Ramirez is hoping that the futsal tournament will be a regular event with four teams each in the high school and college divisions.
“For high school division, we can have Ateneo, USPF, USJ-R and USC, and for the college division, we can have USJ-R, USC, Southwestern University and Cebu Doctors’ University,” he said.
Ramirez added that CDU has a potential to have a strong team since it’s where some of the Ateneo and St. Theresa’s College graduates study. Ateneo and STC have futsal programs that have produced national team players. (ML)