Phl soft netters keep eyes on bigger prize

The national soft tennis squad is keeping its eyes on the bigger prize after emerging as the country’s first medalist in the 20th Asian Games that went full blast late Saturday in Nagoya.

Team captain Bien Zoleta said they will go all out in the medal round, hoping to turn their bronze medal into gold and set the tone for what promises to be a very successful campaign for Team Philippines in this prestigious continental showpiece.

The quintet of Zoleta, Princess Catindig, Christy Sanosa, Shyryn Salazar and Hilary Paas will face reigning champion Japan in the semifinals at 8 a.m. (Manila time) time on Sunday at the Higashiyama Park Tennis Center.

Should they emerge victorious, they will advance to the final against the winner between South Korea and Chinese Taipei also on Sunday for a chance to secure a historic gold medal.

Zoleta said they are determined to give their best despite dealing with some minor injuries.

“As for myself, I got blisters on my feet. It was hard for me to run. Then Princess, what she did earlier was stretch her ankles and legs,” Zoleta, a four-time Southeast Asian Games gold medalist who has been competing in the Asian Games since 2010 in Guangzhou, told DAILY TRIBUNE in an interview.

“So, we are very inspired to play, and we have already won a medal. Maybe our color will change on Sunday.”

The Filipina aces marched to the Asian Games prepared. They had a three-month buildup in South Korea with the goal of emerging as the first Filipinos to win a medal in this 45-nation competition.

Their preparation was worth it as they finished second in Group B with a 2-1 record, beating Mongolia and Thailand before falling to Chinese Taipei last Friday to advance to the medal round against the home team.

Zoleta said regardless of what happens, their solid run in the team event will serve as a springboard to their campaign in the singles, doubles and mixed doubles events in the coming days.

“In our opening event, we won a medal right away, so it gives high morale to all of my teammates,” said the 33-year-old Zoleta, who came from a tennis family in Quezon Province.

“Our first target was to win a medal in the team event. So, we’re hoping that in the coming days, in the coming events, we’ll win more medals.”