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By Eddie G. Alinea Contributor
LIPA CITY: The annual National
Open Softball Championships for men and women might yet have a
permanent home.
If Mayor Oscar Gozos of Lipa City
will have his way, he wants Batangas’ premier city to be the
softball capital of the Philippines.
“Yes, if Asaphil will consent,
I want Lipa to be the permanant venue of the National Open. If this
happens, they would be ridding themselves of the perennial problem
of looking for a host each year,” said Gozos, who hosted the
tournament from May 30 to June 6.
“The Lipeños have always been
softball lovers ever since I can remember. Nakita mo naman ang
daan-daang taong nanood ng mga laro. Talaga namang masisiyahan
ka,” he said in reference to the hundreds who watched the games at
the Barangay Banay-Banay, Barangay Marauoy and Barangay San
Sebastian softball fields.
The championship match between
eventual winner Philippine Air Force and Zamboanga City held at
Barangay San Sebastian drew 18,000 spectators, while that between
defending champion University of the Philippines and arch rival
Adamson-Manila held in Banay-Banay and won by the former had a
16,000 yelling-and-jumping gallery.
“The interest shown by our
people, not only in Lipa but also in the adjacent towns, led me to
propose to Mr. Lhuillier, through his man friday Jun Veloso, that
Lipa be made the permanent home of the Open,” he reasoned out.
Asaphil secretary-general Danny
Francisco, who was at the championship games on Friday to present
the trophies and individual awards, said he sees no problem making
the city the Open’s permanent site.
“When Mr. Lhuiller [who was in
Europe] arrives, I will suggest that he calls the board to a meeting
to discuss that possibility as well as the other projects proposed
by the mayor,” he said. “Mayor Gozos has been one of
softball’s staunchest supporters even before he bid to host this
year’s Open.”
Veloso, who also acted as
tournament director, said the Open was one of most successful held
by Asaphil.
He also thanked Gozos and the
city government, particularly the City Community Affairs headed by
Danny Tobias and the people of Lipa, especially the Lipa City
Softball Ambassadors, Inc.
Meanwhile, Airmen pitcher
Florante Acuna and UP’s Dione Macasu bagged the Most Valuable
Player awards.
Other top individual performers
in the men’s division were Acuna (best pitcher), Apol Rosales of
Lipa (home run king and best slugger), Isidro Abello of Lipa (best
hitter) and Denmark Bathan of Rizal Technological University (most
RBI).
The awardees in the women’s
division were Syurel Ramos of Adamson (best pitcher), Alex Zuluaga
of UP (best hitter and best slugger), Elna Parohinog of
Adamson-Manila (home run queen and most RBI) and Brenda Bacarisas of
Rizal (most stolen bases).
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