PH archery team wraps up SEA Games campaign sans gold

PH Men’s Archery composed of Earl Benjamin Yap, Joseph Vicencio and Paul Marton Dela Cruz bags the Bronze medal at the 2017 SEA Games in KL, Malaysia. INQUIRER/ MARIANNE BERMUDEZ

The Philippine archery team had its chances to bring home at least a gold medal but ended up settling for less in the 2017 Southeast Asian Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The squad hauled one silver and four bronze medals after Florante Matan and Nicole Ortega were booted out in the semifinals of the mixed doubles event after bowing to Indonesia in a sudden-death shoot-off, 19-16.

Matan and Ortega blew a golden opportunity to secure at least a bronze despite leading their Malaysian counterparts Khairul Anuar Muhammad and Nural Aliya Ghapar, 4-2, in the final set.

The two, then, yielded to Vietnam’s Chu Duc Anh and Loc Thi Dao, 2-6, (34-37, 35-33, 36-37, 34-36).

“Vietnam got back at us after we beat them in the men’s and women’s team recurve for the bronze last Monday,” noted head coach Clint Sayo.

Nicole Marie Tagle, 15, who competed in the individual women’s recurve, bagged the country’s lone silver.

Marton dela Cruz, meanwhile, gave the Philippines its first medal—a bronze in men’s individual compound before the official opening of the regional meet.