Pythons dominate the waters in swimming competition

By Fritz F. Bustamante

Paddling through the waters with speed and grace, the NSG Pythons snatched the most victories in the heated swimming competition held at the Xavier Ateneo Sports Centre on Feb 26. Amassing a total of six gold medals, the Pythons got ahead of the Artscies Tigers, who played a fair match against them with a total collection of four gold medals.

Familiar with the stream of the waters, Python Stacey Sy, who in 2019 bagged gold, and Kayleigh

Pabelic consistently dove to victory in the women’s swimming competition, with Sy taking the victory in the 200-meter freestyle and 100-meter breaststroke, while Pabelic taking the victory in the 50-meter breaststroke and 100-meter freestyle.

In the men’s swimming events, the unparalleled ArtScies Tiger Martin Pareja dominated almost all of the events, having secured easy wins and single–handedly owning the colleges’ gold and silver medals, only falling short in the 50-meter freestyle, with Python John

Rimando having the upper hand. Pareja’s brother, Matthew Pareja, followed along his brother’s speed and bagged three silver medals.

For the concluding swimming event, the colleges faced each other off in the 4x50-meter mixed relay. Each of the different colleges came into teams with four members each. The Pythons, having consistently performed well over the duration of the swimming competition, consisting of the powerhouse swimmers Kayleigh Pabelic, Stacey Sy, John Matthew Rimando, and Luke Ranan, left no one surprised in their easy victory in the said swimming event.

The Tigers, with the equally skilled swimmers Matthew Pareja, Martin Pareja, Christine Baleta, and Luchis Guzman, swam with great speed but ultimately fell short against the brisk Pythons. Still persisting through the tides of the waters with grit and perseverance, the Law Lady Justice swimmers, consisting of Ivan Gabutina, Rey Buquis Jr., John Tamparong, and Mikha Vallejos, took the third spot in the said swimming event.

The final ranking declared the Engineering Warriors as the first runner-up while the School of Business and Management (SBM) Eagles took the second runner-up title with a score of 2-1 against the Nursing (NSG) Pythons.C

The Xavier Cup (TXC) 2023 launched the Intramurals with its most anticipated Cheerdance Competition. This year, six teams, clad in bright colors, glitters, and painted faces, set the University Gymnasium ablaze on Feb 24, with their enthralling routines and extreme dance moves.

Modern touché

As the green flag was waved, the College of Agriculture’s Aggie Bullwhippers flaunted their hip-hop inspired outfit in black, neon green, and a pop of fuschia. Taking the center stage, they charge with a loud Ateneo chant in tune with their smooth dance moves and cartwheels. They performed their routine in speed transition and simultaneous basket tosses, which left the crowd in awe. However, their synchrony toppled down as one flyer missed to catch up with the beat in an earlier stunt. Rectifying their mishap during mid-performance, they surprised the crowd with an outfit change, matching their funk moves to the music. The Bullwhippers finished in fourth place with such an amazing opening performance, averaging 75.13 points.

The horde is here!

Two teams merged into one, daunting in gray and royal blue. The combined colors of Legion displayed the camaraderie of the College of Computer Studies (CCS) Wizards and School of Education (SOE) Phoenix. The squad started strong with an enthusiastic cheer for Ateneo’s chant, which was then followed by a remarkable cupie stunt. Though a flyer fell during the execution, they bounced back with a clean and fast pace transition from one formation to another. Legion had successfully finished their performance with cartwheels and flyer backflips. They flourished to the top three with an accumulated score of 75.13 points.

An ambush for the hunters

Re-entering the competition as an independent cheer squad for the first time in eight years, the College of Nursing (NSG) Pythons came in full energy. The squad cheered in their blue and white bodysuits to the Ateneo chant with hopes of slithering their way to the top. Despite a bold start, their peak energy turned weak as their unstable lifts came out, failing the execution of their flyers’ stunts. The wobbly mounts and tosses fail to stand out in the crowd, scoring only 58.47 points, placing them at the bottom.

Warriors on the move

With the deafening honks from the tribe, the Engineering Warriors set foot in the arena in maroon and orange bodysuits. They executed groovy and nostalgic Filipino dance moves, in sync with their aerobic outfits, amusing the crowd. However, the tribe’s cheerdance execution went downhill as they failed to carry through a smooth performance. In spite of that, the Warriors continued to defend their tribe by garnering a total score of 63.97 points, placing them at 5th in the competition.

Grooving in retro

Setting the bar at its highest, the School of Business and Management (SBM) All Stars entered in blazing confidence. Dressed in full retro glam with yellow tights and a purple bodysuit, the Eagles sang their hearts out to the Ateneo chant, which was then followed by their iconic school cheer. As the reigning champions of the cheerdance competition, it was no shock to witness their killer routine with a draw-dropping opening stunt relay. Their powerful and strong spirits left the crowd speechless as their flyer exhibited a full twist cradle. The song choice surely remarked to be the crowd’s favorite for the night. SBM All Stars put up a good fight for this year’s cheerdance despite failing to win back the gold. With an average score of 88.37, the Eagle’s placed second.

Prowling heroes

With a longing thirst for the golden cup, the Tigers Co-Ed of College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) served this year’s competition with a killer performance. Clad in superhero costumes, the squad flew their way in with a joyous cheer of the Ateneo chant, backed by the University’s biggest delegation in the crowd. The Tigers surprised the audience with their exhibition of the most extreme successive throws and stunts. In line with their superhero theme, the Tigers showcased their bravery through their strong lifts, powerful balance, and flexibility. Surpassing their opponents, the Tigers Supreme Co-Ed bagged the gold with 88.67 points making their way to the top for this year’s cheerdance competition.

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Since the last two years of Intramural hiatus, TXC has finally regained its light. This year’s cheerdance competition is the most challenging one yet, with new faces representing the different colleges. Vying for the championship title has always been the goal, but admist their fallbacks, no effort nor hardwork was wasted. The teams proved that apart from the award, their spirit of teamwork and determination was championed above all else.C