FORMER University of Athletics of the Philippines (UAAP) MVP trackster John Lloyd Osario cashed in four gold medals in his Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (Cesafi) debut to power the University of San Carlos (USC) to a dominating performance in the men’s division.
USC finished on top of the men’s standing with an unofficial medal haul of 12 gold medals, six silver medals and three bronze medals in the Cesafi track and field competition, which concluded on Saturday, Oct. 12, 2019, at the Cebu City Sports Center.
The native of Alcoy, Cebu won the gold in the 400m run in 50.02 seconds and snagged another gold in the 800m run in 1:59.15. He was also part of the team that won the 4x400m and 4x100m relays.
Though most athletes from Cebu move to Manila, Osario took a different route.
“I’m part of a broken family. My father is here in Cebu and he wants me to study here. So far my experience has been good. The Cesafi competition is also tough,” said the first year BA Finance student in Cebuano.
“I’m looking forward to more achievements. My time in the 400m has improved since I came here,” added Osario, who won the MVP plum when he was a 10th grader donning the colors of University of the East in UAAP Season 78.
The University of Cebu (UC) finished second in the men’s overall standing with an unofficial tally of 4-7-6 gold-silver-bronze haul followed by University of Southern Philippines-Foundation (USP-F) with a 1-4-7 tally.
USC’s head coach Arvin Loberanis told SunStar Cebu it was the first time for the school to win the overall crown in the men’s division in recent years. This, despite having 80 percent of rookies.
“We were allowed to get 26 players—14 for men’s and 12 for women’s. I challenged the athletes to perform,” he said.
The women’s division will be a tight one as the overall result will be decided only after the last event, the 3,000-meter women’s walk, which was ongoing as of press time.
UC leads the women’s side with a 6-3-5 haul followed by USC with a 5-9-4. Both schools have representatives in the 3,000m.
On the other hand, the high school division was completely dominated by UC, which won the girls’ and boys’ divisions in a convincing fashion.
UC’s boys’ team finished with a 8-3-2 medal haul and was way ahead of the rest of the teams. The Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu took second place with a 3-0-1 tally and USC-Basic Education Department (USC-BED) settled for third place with a 0-5-1.
UC’s ace trackster Martchan Torregosa completed his goal of a five-gold medal finish after winning the 800m run and 4x100m and 4x400m relays to add up to his two gold medals last week. The 17-year-old Torregosa was named the MVP in the boys’ secondary.
Guest team the Sisters of Mary School (SMS-Boystown), drew some of the spotlight after Jessie Abelgos won three gold medals in the boys’ 1,500m, 3,000m and 5,000m.
UC ruled the girls’ division with a 9-9-5 medal haul. USC finished second with a 7-5-6 and USP-F took third place with a 1-2-0 tally.