University of Cebu’s (UC) table tennis players who represented Team Cebu City in the recent Fourth Philippine National Open Table Tennis Tournament at the University of the Philippines (UP) campus in Diliman scored upset wins over heavily favored teams to rule the meet.
Team Cebu City led by coach Jessica Honoridez dominated the women’s team event, men’s doubles, men’s singles, boys high school singles and men’s college team event and finished second in the women’s college team and mixed doubles.
“Actually this is really the goal of my players but my initial plan is just to give them exposure with this kind of tournament. But I was surprised when we topped the toughest divisions this year,” said Honoridez.
In the women’s team event, Jerny Kay Pepito, Elona Dane Tormis and Jennifer Jacalan upset defending Universities Athletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP) champion and host team UP in the final to improve its second place finish last year.
“We are like having a step-by-step improvement each year and we never expected that we can get this kind of achievement this early,” added Honoridez.
Also scoring a major upset in the tournament is the tandem of Danelle Jay Tormis and Val Stephen Jaca who routed South East Asian (SEA) Games bronze medalists Richard Gonzales and partner Rodel Valle in men’s doubles.
Tormis, 16 and the 15-year-old Jaca also beat the top seeded tandem of Bong Palermo and Jong Ortalla in the semifinals round and the former No. 1 ranked pair of Zoren Mendiola and Marcos De Jesus.
Tormis also topped the men’s singles by defeating Valle. Earlier, he also beat highly-ranked Gege Aguinalve.
Tormis, Jaca and John Paul Christopher Baay ruled the boys high school division as well as the men’s college team event.
Pepito settled for third in the women’s singles.
According to Honoridez, the win will definitely give her wards a huge moral boost with the 2012 Private Schools Athletic Association (PRISAA) National Games slated last week of April in Cebu.
Honoridez is also hopeful of a better performance by Team Cebu City in the Palarong Pambansa this May in Pangasinan.