By: Kim Yoshi Espiritu
Letran’s Rafael Acuña maintains eye contact to calculate his opponent’s moves in Board 4 of the NCAA 101 Chess Round 3. Photo by Kim Yoshi Espiritu | The LANCE.
One blunder is all it takes to turn things around.
The Letran Chess team is chartering unfamiliar borders as they navigate through a tough mental warfare in the NCAA Season 101 Chess Championship hosted by the Emilio Aguinaldo College.
During the first three tournament rounds held at the Pearl Manila Hotel along Taft Avenue, the Juniors and Seniors team each logged three consecutive losses after their four-board pairings against San Beda University, Lyceum of the Philippines University, and Mapua University.
The resilient Letran Seniors lineup features Justice Phoenix Malabanan (Board 1), Andrew Ibarra (Board 2), Adrian Ballesta (Board 3), and Rafael Acuña (Board 4). The Juniors team is composed of Yancy Gregorio (Board 1), Marco Azaola (Board 2), Jad Diamos (Board 3), and Sean Quilang (Board 4).
A formidable opening challenge awaited Letran when they faced reigning champions San Beda on Nov. 8, closing the round with a 1–3 result — secured only by victories in Seniors Board 4 and Juniors Board 2.
Their scheduled Round 2 match against host EAC on Nov. 9, Sunday, was postponed due to inclement weather at the height of Super Typhoon Uwan.
Moving forward in their second bout against LPU, Acuña maneuvered tactical board plays to deliver the win in Board 4, however, tiny mishaps in Malabanan’s board proved crucial as Letran lost sight of their first triumph of the season, falling to another 1-3 loss.
Their younger counterparts were also downed by LPU, failing 0-4 in almost 5 hours of contest.
Similar results happened in today’s matchup against Mapua University with the juniors collecting 1-3 in the boards. While Acuña’s draw resulted in a 0.5-3.5 reversal in the senior ranks.
Ibarra came close to the cup, however his Board 2 matchup took advantage of his costly errors and made right counters to secure the win for their squad.
Still hanging on to their winless record, the Letran Chess Team is eager to correct their blunders and finally break through against University of Perpetual Help System Dalta on Sunday, Nov. 16, at the Pearl Manila Hotel.