Caloocan takes down Iloilo in PCAP

MANILA, Philippines – Any talk of the Caloocan LoadManna Knights on a downward spiral should be put on hold — pronto.

The Knights, who struggled in the first round of the ongoing PCAP-SMC-Ayala Land Premier Cup, have come alive in the second round. That in itself is an understatement.

In this second round, Caloocan is at 6-1 and in fourth place in the tough Northern Division. 

Although they lost by a squeaker to Malaysia’s Penang squad, 11-10, Caloocan has taken two impressive victories in their last three outings — 12-9 over SinQGApore last Wednesday, and now 13.5-7.7 over Wesley So Cup champions, the Iloilo Kisela Knights. 

They capped off their weekend-long brilliance with an 18-3 demolition of juniors squad, Sunrays.

Against the top-ranked Kisela Knights, the Knights drew in blitz play, 3.5-3.5.

Come rapid chess, Caloocan’s wondrous duo of IM Paulo Bersamina and IM Jem Garcia held Iloilo counterparts GM Joey Antonio and Karl Viktor Ochoa to a draw in the top two boards.

Caloocan’s Arvie Lozano, Domingo Ramos, Barlo Nadera and Nelson Villanueva all took crucial wins down the line for a 10-4 advantage that spelled a 13.5-7.5 triumph. 

Said IM Garcia, who was the recipient of PCAP’s first ever Best Player of the Conference during the inaugural All-Filipino Conference, “When we were struggling in the first round, we lost four matches by one point — against Cagayan, Laguna, Isabela, and Manila. Breaks of the game ‘yan. We just told each other that we need to finish better and get every point that we can from the blitz to rapid.”

“What is important is learning from those losses and making the most of this second round.”

The triumph over the top-rated Iloilo and SinQGApore have boosted Caloocan’s confidence and momentum. They will need all that and more as the once more go through the gauntlet of top southern rivals in the resurgent Negros Kingsmen and the up-and-coming Lapu-Lapu Naki Warriors on Wednesday, October 20.