UNIT 1 successfully defended its championship in the Davao City Athletic Association (Dcaa) Meet 2025, amassing 104 gold, 69 silver, and 65 bronze medals. The week-long competition concluded with the football finals on Saturday, February 8, at the Davao City-University of the Philippines Mindanao (UPMin) Sports Complex football field.
Despite the victory, Unit 1’s medal haul fell short of last year’s record of 151 golds, 112 silvers, and 98 bronzes, accumulated from both the elementary and secondary divisions.
Unit 2 climbed from third place in 2024 to secure the runner-up spot with a 67-74-63 medal count, slightly lower than last year's 75-95-78. Meanwhile, Unit 3, which finished second last year, slipped to third with 64-57-84, a drop from its 79-72-140 total in 2024.
Unit 6 – Davao Association of Catholic Schools (Dacs) – remained in fourth place, significantly improving its medal tally with 58 golds, 56 silvers, and 62 bronzes, up from 18-22-15 last year.
Unit 4 secured fifth place with a 45-48-50 medal haul, improving from its 40-36-109 finish in 2024.
Unit 5 Prisaa -Private Schools Athletic Association followed in sixth with 24 golds, 18 silvers, and 16 bronzes, dropping from last year’s 40-32-14 tally.
Unit 8 Daprisa-Davao Association of Private Schools and Administrators landed in seventh with 22 golds, 40 silvers, and 37 bronzes, slightly improving from its 23-33-21 finish.
Unit 7-Dacisaa-Davao Integrated Schools Athletic Association rounded out the rankings in eighth place with 17 golds, 28 silvers, and 31 bronzes, slipping from its 27-26-36 count in 2024.
Eight-peat
The city’s boxing powerhouse, Unit 1, continued its reign by clinching its eighth straight overall championship after securing five golds, one silver, and four bronzes at Bolton Elementary School.
Unit 4 finished second with four golds, three silvers, and one bronze, while Unit 2 (1-4-6) and Unit 3 (0-2-3) settled for third and fourth, respectively.
Unit 1 coach Jay Reeve Guerrero was proud of his team’s performance, highlighting the balance of experienced fighters and fresh talent.
"Eight times nami nag overall sa Dcaa boxing since 2016 pa. Sa among players nga midula this year kay upat nga karaan ug unom kay mga newbies (We have won the overall championship in DCAA boxing eight times since 2016. Among our players this year, four are veterans, while six are newcomers)," Guerrero said in a Messenger interview with SunStar Davao.
Among Unit 1’s boxing gold medalists include Jhon Paul Zeta of Davao City National High School (DCNHS), who dominated the school boys’ 44-46 kg pinweight division, and his teammate Carl Genson Gello, who ruled the school boys’ 46-48 kg light flyweight category. Jet Femme Fornes reigned in the junior boys’ 48-50 kg flyweight, while Prince Arm’s C. Cole took gold in the youth boys’ 48-51 kg class. Vicenta Nograles National High School’s Mark Joseph Ducado topped the junior boys’ 50-52 kg light bantamweight division.
Fornes, Ducado, and Cole all won their bouts via referee-stopped contest (RSC), proving their dominance inside the ring. Fornes forced an RSC in the second round against Grant Myco Bibat of Unit 4, while Ducado scored a first-round RSC victory over Raymund Villarama, also of Unit 4. Cole won his gold medal with a second-round RSC over John Ferry Certifico.
Pool stars
Unit 1’s cue artists made their presence felt in the Dcaa Meet 2025 billiards competition, racking up three gold medals. Unit 8 snatched one gold, while Unit 4 settled for two silvers. Unit 3 finished with a single silver and two bronzes, while Unit 7 ended with a silver and a bronze.
Roaring Bulldogs
Over at the Davao City-UPMin football field, the Rizal Memorial Colleges (RMC) Bulldogs of Unit 5-Prisaa stamped their class, winning both the elementary and secondary boys’ championships.
In the secondary division, RMC edged out Immanuel School of Davao (ISD) of Unit 8 in a tightly contested 1-0 final. The ISD booters settled for silver, while Holy Child College of Davao (HCCD) of Unit 7 took the bronze.
The RMC elementary squad also delivered, blanking Mintal Elementary School of Unit 4, 2-0, in the finals to secure the gold. Mintal ES walked away with silver, while Catalunan Grande Elementary School of Unit 3 claimed bronze.
Bracing for Davraa
With the Dcaa Meet 2025 wrapped up, the top-performing athletes are now gearing up for the Davraa Meet 2025, set for March 9-15 in Davao del Norte.
DepEd Davao City Superintendent Reynante Solitario emphasized the importance of preparation, confirming that the city’s Davraa-bound athletes will undergo a month-long in-house training from February 9 to March 8.
The training, he said, is essential in strengthening the city's title-retention bid and improving its gold medal count in the regional meet. MLSA