Frias, Abasolo lead Davao winners to Shell chess final

DAVAO – As the board battles of 825 participants cleared late Sunday evening at the local Gaisano Mall, eight finalists emerged to represent Southern Mindanao in the 2002 Shell National Active Chess Championship.

Cub sports reporter Jaime Joshua Frias of Cagayan de Oro’s Liceo de Cagayan led the junior division finalists with a neat seven points to take the gold medal and the P5,000 top purse.

Frias capped a six-game winning streak with a toe-to-toe Queen’s Gambit brawl with Digos City’s Neil Abayon in the final round, nailing the point after 50 moves.

Xavier University sophomore Silverio Abasolo earned the silver and P4,000 with his 6.5-point output in the seven-round Swiss format regional eliminations. Education sophomore Chris Realino of Davao del Norte State College took the bronze and P3,000.

Fourth placer Winston Elmer Arrocena, an electronics and communications engineering freshman from Tagum City earned a ticket to the finals and P2,000.

With his final round loss to Frias, Abayon dropped to fifth place and pocketed P1,000.

High school sophomore Lyndon Sombilon topped the 14-and under bracket with seven points, hacking his final round triumph in a 50-mover Sicilian-Najdorf duel with Panabo City’s Jay Bulicatin. Sombilon took the gold and P4,000.

Sombilon’s co-finalists include second placer Jester Andoy who earned the silver and P3,000; third placer Rodel Alsado seized the bronze plus P2,000 while fourth placer Dillon Intilla got P1,000.

Panabo National High School sophomore James Bulicatin took fifth place and P500.

Erianne Mabelle Alcordo booked the best performance in the 10-and- under section to earn P1,500. Three-year-old Kokie Gallo won the "Youngest Participant Award" in the 825-strong field. Over 30 percent of the participants were females.