Asian Games: Archery bronze medal highlights Day 8

Archer Paul Marton dela Cruz provided the lone bright spot in another disappointing day for Team Philippines in the 17th Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.

After losing to Iranian Esmaeil Ebadi 140-146 in the semifinals of the men’s compound event, Dela Cruz vented his ire on Malaysian counterpart Muhamad Zaki Bin Mahazan and ground out a slim 140-139 to snatch the bronze medal, the country’s second overall aside from a pair of silver that came from wushu after eight days of battle.

Dela Cruz’s exploits, however, were completely overshadowed by another meltdown suffered by Gilas Pilipinas in men’s basketball, squandering what seemed to be a comfortable 16-point lead in the third canto that led to a heart-breaking 95-97 setback against host Korea, pushing the national cagers on the brink of elimination.

Luckily for Gilas Pilipinas, which saw head coach Chot Reyes bench naturalized import Marcus Douthit as a “disciplinary action” against the Koreans, Kazakhstan defeated Qatar 65-57 in the other crucial match in Group H, keeping alive the Pinoy dribblers' hopes of making it to the semi-finals via the backdoor.

Doing that is easier said than done, however, as Gilas Pilipinas should beat Kazakhstan by more than 10 points in their all-important 2:15 p.m. encounter on Sunday and Qatar should lose against Koreans, paving the way for a three-way tie with similar 1-2 records where the quotient system will be applied.

While Dela Cruz shone individually, the men’s compound team dropped a close 224-227 setback against Iran and did not make it to the medal round.

Female boxers Josie Gabuco and Nesthy Petecio also stamped their class against the opposition as they advanced to the quarterfinals of their respective divisions while boosting the country’s hopes of bagging its first gold medal.

Gabuco, 27, a former world champion in 2012, defeated former world youth titlist Lin Yu Ting of Chinese-Taipei 2-0 in their flyweight match while Petecio proved too hot to handle for Kazakhstan’s Gulzhaina Ubbiniyazova with an impressive 3-0 win in their lightweight showdown.

Ian Clark Bautista, however, failed to make it to the Last 8 as he dropped a stinging 0-3 decision to hometown bet Sangdon Choe, who got the nod from three judges who scored their men’s flyweight bout 26-30, 27-29, 27-29.

Also struggling to keep in step with their regional rivals were women golfers, with Mia Legaspi and Princess Superal carding 71 and 72, respectively, further falling behind in individual side of the competition at the Dream Park Country Club.

Legaspi currently has a 213 total, good for eighth place, 10 shots behind individual leader Budsabakorn Sukapan of Thailand, while Superal stood at 214.

Their aggregate score of 143 gave the Philippines a 427 total, good for fifth place, in team play going into the final round on Sunday in a close battle with Japan (425) and China (426) for the bronze medal.

In rowing, Hermie Macaranas placed fifth overall in the men’s canoe single 1000m heat 2 but did not finish the 200m heat 1 event when he lost his balance and eventually fell off his boat after it tilted.

In women’s bowling, the country’s team A composed of Maria Liza Del Rosario, Liza Clutario, and Marian Lara Posadas finished 12th, 304 pins behind the leaders, while their PH 2 team counterparts, Marie Alexis Sy, Anne Marie Kiac, and Krizziah Lyn Tabora finished 14th.

In tennis, the men’s doubles pair of Ruben Gonzales and Treat Huey surrendered a 0-6, 3-6 decision to Korea’s Kim Yongku and Hyeon Chung.

In athletics, Archand Bagsit and Edgardo Alejan have qualified to the second semifinals of the men’s 400m in athletics. Their next races were set late on Saturday night.