Camarines stuns Toledo in PCAP south opener

MANILA, Philippines – No Mark Paragua (who’s now with the Pasig King Pirates). No Ellan Asuela (who’s now with the Negros Kingsmen). 

And yet the Camarines Soaring Eagles scored a huge opening day win in the SMC-All-Filipino Cup of the second season of the Professional Chess Association of the Philippines.

Coelleir Graspela and Walt Allen Talan led the way for Camarines by taking four out of six points from the top-rated boards. 

While Toledo’s Jinky Catulay held off Virgenie Ruaya and Ezraline Alvarez in the lady boards, Camarines’ home-grown corps were a huge difference in getting the win.

Recarte Tiauson, Virgen Gil Ruaya and NM Ronald Llavanes claimed eight of the nine points available, and that was the huge difference in winning blitz chess, 5-2, and drawing in rapid play, 7-7, as Toledo’s Merben Roque got back at Graspela. 

It is a good start for this team, which made the finals of the first SMC-All-Filipino Cup but finished second to eventual champion Laguna. 

In other PCAP southern division games, preseason favorite Davao blasted Surigao, 18-3. The Iloilo Kisela Knights slipped past a tough Palawan-Albay Queen’s Gambit, 11.5-7.5. Zamboanga returned to PCAP (after sitting out last year’s third conference) with a confidence boosting 14-7 win over Cagayan de Oro. And the Negros Kingsmen rebounded from a loss in blitz play to overwhelm Iriga in rapid chess for a 13.5-7.5 win.