BANGKOK, Thailand — Team Philippines hit a home run with six gold medals to raise its mint haul to 11 in Day 3 of hostilities in the 33rd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games on Friday on different war fronts here.
The Philippine baseball team opened the deluge of mints after completing a golden sweep of the competition with a 5-3 win over Thailand at the Queen Sirikit Baseball Stadium.
Veteran pitcher Romeo Jasmin sent out 10 batters over eight innings before lefty reliever Amiel de Guzman slammed the door shut on the hosts by getting the final three outs for the Filipino batters’ three-peat and fourth in the last five times baseball was played in the biennial meet.
The only time the Nationals failed to win the crown was in 2007 at the hands of the Thais.
At the Supachalasai National Stadium, John Cabang Tolentino shattered the SEA Games record and delivered the Philippines’ first gold medal in athletics.
Tolentino clocked 13.66 seconds in the men’s 110-meter hurdles, eclipsing the previous mark of 13.69 set by Thailand’s Jamras Rittidet in the 2015 SEA Games.
The Filipino champion powered past Singapore’s Chen Xiang Ang, (13.75), and Abdul Lattif Mohamad Armin Zahryl (13.85).
“For me, it’s a big honor to raise the flag on the top of the podium for the Philippines. So I’m super happy,” Tolentino said.
“I had some wrong steps but I’m strong so it didn’t matter.”
Not to be outdone, decathlete Hokett Delos Santos dominated his event with 6917 points to beat Thailand’s Suttisak Singkhon (6649) and Indonesia’s Fauzan Richsan Idan (6582).
John Ivan Cruz bagged the vault apparatus gold medal in the men’s artistic gymnastics at the Thammasat University Rangsit Campus Gymnasium 5 in Pathum Thani.
Initially adjudged as a silver medalist, Cruz and his team made a successful protest and review, enabling him to emerge as co-champ with Malaysian Muhammad Sharul Aimy with identical average of 13.833 points. Home bet Tikumporn Surintorta finished with 13.717 points for the bronze medal.
“My target is to defend floor exercise title but God gave me this one,” said Cruz, who gave the country its second gold medal after Aleah Finnegan’s vault mint in the distaff side Thursday.
Kayla Sanchez bagged gold in the women’s 100m freestyle with a 54.82 seconds clocking to beat compatriot Heather White (55.36) and Singapore’s Tin Weng Quah (55.60) at the Sports Authority Thailand Aquatic Centre.
Sanchez won her second gold after ruling the 4x100 freestyle with White, Chloe Isleta, and Xiandi Chua last Wednesday. The two-time Olympian also had two silver hauls.
Eighteen-year-old jin Tachiana Mangin scored a 2-0 win over home bet Kamonchanok Seeken to cop the women’s 49kgs kyorugi gold at the Fashion Island Shopping Mall in Bangkok.
Team Philippines hiked its gold-silver-bronze haul to 11-15-31 in fifth place. Thailand maintained its lead in the medal standings with 36-19-15.
Mark Ashley Fajardo secured at least a bronze after beating Indonesian Jekri Riwu to save the day for the Philippine boxing team following the painful defeats suffered by Hergie Bacyadan and Junmilardo Ogayre at the Chulalongkorn Sports Center here.
Fajardo’s opponent was forced to retire due to what appeared to be an elbow injury just seconds into the bout of the men’s 69-kilogram class.
He will be up next against Thai Sinsiri Bunjong in a match that Fajardo hopes to win convincingly to avoid the specter of losing via hometown decision.
Bacyadan settled for bronze after a 0-4 decision to defending champion Baison Manikon in the women’s 70kgs class. Ogayre absorbed a 0-5 loss to Sakda Ruamthan in the men’s 60kg quarterfinals.
In indoor volleyball, Alas Pilipinas women’s clinched a semifinals ticket after beating Singapore 25-13, 25-8, 25-18, at the Indoor Stadium Huamark.
The Filipinas face Vietnam in the semis on Sunday.
Alas Pilipinas men’s, on the other hand, battles Myanmar Saturday to begin its campaign.
Sisi Rondina and Bernadeth Pons began Alas Pilipinas’ redemption bid in the women’s beach volleyball with a 2-1 win over Indonesia along the Jomtien Beach in Chonburi.
The tandem hacked out a come-from-behind 15-21, 21-16, 18-16 victory over Desi Ratnasari and Nur Sari in the deciding match.
They won the opening match of the best-of-three affair with a 21-18, 18-21, 15-10 win over Ratnasari and Sari, although Indonesia dragged the Philippines to a decider after Bernadetta Shella Herdanti and Josephine Selvina nailed a 12-21, 21-19, 15-13 victory over Dij Rodriguez and Sunnie Villapando.
Lifters Rosegie Ramos (women’s 48kgs) Fernando Agad Jr. (men’s 60kgs) and Jhodie Peralta (women’s 53kgs) begin their weightlifting podium quest today at the Chonburi Sports School.
Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Hidilyn Diaz (women’s 58kgs) will lift on Sunday.