The STANDS: An INQUIRER Sports Newsletter

 

September 6, 2024

Mason Amos will be among the players affected by the new UAAP rule on transferees. (MARLO CUETO)

Hey there sports fan, Wow, it has been a long time, hasn't it? Well, I was pretty much preoccupied with helping out the team work around the limitations of our Paris Olympics coverage. If you want to catch up on your favorite story on Carlos Yulo and the Olympians, you can still find our greatest hits on this menu.  By the way, here's an Olympic-themed trivia question: What was Bianca Pagdanganan’s final-round score during the Paris Olympics women’s golf tournament? You'll find the answer at the end of this email. So, how do we reacquaint ourselves again after more than a month's worth of hiatus? How about we kick off with the UAAP, which is opening this weekend, along with the 100th staging of the NCAA? After an offseason of whirlwind updates regarding fresh recruits and dramatic transfers, focus will finally be where it should be: On the court. Or is it? The UAAP also caused quite a stir when it announced a new eligibility rule covering transferees. The new rule kind of dances around a law passed to make eligibility and residency requirements for transferees less punitive, but it does so for a reason: According to lawyer Rebo Saguisag, the UAAP chief, the league is trying to balance the interests of its stakeholders. Basically, the rule states that while transferees still need to sit out just one year of residency, they will be stripped of ano extra year of eligibility. In a nutshell, Mason Amos will get to play for La Salle next year after his celebrated exit from rival Ateneo. How long he will remain with the Archers' program remains to be seen.

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Bernadeth Pons hugs Kyle Negrito after their triumph. (PVL IMAGES)

Meanwhile... …Make it Cream-9! The Creamline Cool Smashers again proved that they are the league standard in the Premier Volleyball League after they ruled the Reinforced Conference via a dominant victory over Akari in their one-game finale. And yes, if you clicked that link and were kind of surprised at where you landed, that's our web-based subscription platform, INQPlus, which carries exclusive sports stories told the way only we can. Subscription link is below. Thank me later. Bernadeth Pons was the breakout star of a Creamline squad that thrived despite the absence of three main cogs and halted what was (still is, actually) an amazing run by Akari. The Young Chargers were looking to cap an unbeaten run in the tournament with their first franchise crown. But apparently, the Erica Staunton-led Cool Smashers plus the fallout of a controversial semifinal victory over PLDT were too much for the young Akari team to handle. What we're up to next: The UAAP and the NCAA basketball tournaments are going to keep us pretty much preoccupied this week. Plus, we are still on the ground in Paris for the Paralympic Games. We'll be providing you with stories and features on our Paralympians straight from the French capital. We'll also keep track of the ongoing PBA Governors' Cup and the much-ballyhooed four-point arc and still provide you with volleyball content via the PVL Invitational Conference. Number of the Week: 51 Points scored by NorthPort's Arvin Tolentino in a recent PBA match. That was the highest output by a local player in two decades.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK “The physical part [of our game] we can recover in one to three days but for the mental health it’s very toxic.” —Taka Minowa, Akari coach, on the jeers and threats the Chargers received after a controversial semifinal victory.

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68. That's the answer to the trivia question above. Think you can ace the rest of our weekly sports quiz? head over to our Viber community and try the test out! Buy the Inquirer at newsstands, subscribe to our digital edition, Inquirer Plus, visit our online site and follow us on socials (Twitter: @inquirersports; FB: facebook.com/inquirersports) for more stories and updates—or to send us questions or suggestions of stories you'd want to read. See you next Friday! Francis Francis T. J. Ochoa is the Sports Editor of the Philippine Daily Inquirer. For comments, suggestions and questions, hit him up on Twitter (@ftjochoaINQ).