ISAA officers Raul Santos of PWU, Andie Cristobal of LCCM, president Melanie Florentino of FEATI, Marlon Asuque of PMMS, Benjie Hernandez of PATTS, and Rogelio delos Santos of Manila Tytana Colleges. INQUIRER.net/RANDOLPH B. LEONGSON
PATTS College of Aeronautics hopes to make a mark in the Inter-Scholastic Athletic Association (ISAA) as it joins the league as a probationary member.
Kickstarting its seventh season on August 19 at Cuneta Astrodome, ISAA will be welcoming the Seahorses as its eighth team in what promises to be a competitive tournament this year.
“We decided to join ISAA because we saw the camaraderie of the athletics program between schools. We’re looking forward to this season and hopefully, we can be fortunate with our chances,” said Benjie Hernandez of PATTS.
But it wouldn’t be easy for PATTS, as it will go up against this season’s host and defending men’s basketball champion, the Philippine Merchant Marine School (PMMS).
“Having been champions, our level of confidence is on a high,” said Marlon Asuque of three-time basketball champs PMMS. “We’re really searching for talent so we can improve and that’s the thing that helped us advance in our sports program.”
But it’s not just the Mariners who will come in as heavy favorites this season, as the FEATI University Seahawks, the St. Dominic College of Asia (SDCA) Red Pikes, the Manila Tytana Colleges Titans, the Manila Adventist Medical Center and Colleges Soaring Angels, the Philippine Women’s University (PWU) Patriots, and the La Consolacion College of Manila (LCCM) Blue Royals will all be gunning for the elusive ISAA basketball title.
The opening gameday will start at 9 a.m. with the opening ceremonies, with coach Ronnie Magsanoc as its guest of honor.
The basketball tournament will shortly follow, with the duel between PMMS and SDCA opening the triple-header, to be followed by the game between LCCM and Tytana, and will end with game between PATTS and PWU.
Aside from basketball, four other sports will be disputed in the upcoming ISAA season, namely volleyball, table tennis, swimming, and badminton.
“All we want is to maintain this so the eight schools that we have can also promote sports,” said ISAA president Melanie Florentino of FEATI. IDL