CEBU, Philippines — The Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) Magis Eagles basked in a historic moment when they completed a rare four-peat in the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI) Season 24 basketball tournament recently.
In sweeping the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Baby Jaguars in their best-of-three finals series, the Magis Eagles etched their name in stone as the first high school team in CESAFI’s 24-year history to win four consecutive crowns.
More to that, the Ateneo Hearters also grabbed the record as the winningest juniors squad in Cebu’s premier inter-school athletic league with eight championship trophies since their breakthrough success in 2012.
For coach Rommel Rasmo, the chief architect of Sacred Heart’s awe-inspiring rise from a perennial doormat to a league powerhouse, their fourth straight title glory gives the entire Ateneo de Cebu community a deep sense of happiness and contentment knowing that all their efforts and sacrifice have finally paid off.
“Of course, it is a great feeling to win four straight championships. It puts you on a high,” said Rasmo. “But after all the celebrations, the thrill of the win becomes a sense of fulfillment. Not just for me, the coaches and the players, but for the entire SHS-AdC community.”
“This is years and years in the making and will not be possible without the support of the parents, our school officials, Fr. Ernesto Javier, Fr. Manny Uy, Fr. Mike Pineda and Fr. Gilbert Levosad, and our benefactors through the years, Mr. Perry Lim, sir Franco Soberano, sir Pat Manigsaca, and sir Afshin Ghassemi,” added Rasmo.
“Special mention also to all our parent coordinators, Popoy Navarro and Lery Chik, who helped make our job easier.”
Rasmo said their accomplishment is a testament to the hard work put in by their players and coaches.
“Without their commitment and sacrifices, we will not be here,” Rasmo continued.
While maintaining excellence in the sporting field, Rasmo is proud to say that they stay true to their vision of molding student-atletes who embody the true spirit of champions in life.
“Like I always tell our players, it is the journey that counts. At the end of the day, we care more about their character formation and their success after going through our program. The championships are sweet bonuses in this process of formation,” Rasmo ended. — (FREEMAN)