CdO boys rule 1st Lumbia chessfest

PLAYERS from Cagayan de Oro City defended their turf in the 1st Lumbia Mindanao Open Chess Championship Rapid Team Tatluhan 2022 last Sunday at the Barangay Gym of Lumbia, Cagayan de Oro City.

Local boys Johnnel Balquin, Lyndon Lumancas and Roland Sajetarios of Team Donzel 07 collected 11 match points in six rounds to snare the championship and the P50,000 top purse.

It was the underrated Sajetarios who starred for Donzel 07 as he impressively outplayed Genesis Apog of Cebu’s Xignex Digital Solution in the final round to cap his perfect 6-of-6 performance on board 3.

Struggling with an inferior position with black and stung by Apog’s early debacle, Cebu’s Ronald Ganzon intentionally placed an unguarded rook along the path of Balquin’s queen in a desperate move. Balquin, however, overlooked the rook, touched another piece, and lost his precious queen on board 1.

But Balquin’s misfortune was compensated on board 2 when it was Bonn Rainauld Tibod’s turn to blunder a queen against Lumancas in a “pressured time” situation.

Team Lumbia, made up of retired Airforce man Allan Cantonjos, newly-elect Fide Master Christian Gian Karlo Arca and Jezreel Lopez, held Maritima Chess Club 2 to a 1.5-1.5 draw to match the 9-point output of Xignex and El Dumadag-Manila.

But Lumbia’s slight edge in the tiebreaker propelled the wards of the father-and-son tandem of barangay chairman Alexander Torralba and barangay administrator Aerol Torralba to a runner-up finish and the P30,000 prize money.

Ganzon’s Xignex and El Dumadag-Manila of Jerry Areque, Allen Mirano, Justine Flint Misa finished third and fourth, respectively.

The R-Suico-CDO team of Randolph Christopher Dalauta, Bryan Jose and Arian Belly Calido topped a bunch of 8-pointers to place fifth overall.