PH women’s, men’s wheelchair 3x3 squads out for gold in 13th ASEAN Para Games

January 21 ------ For the first time ever, the Philippine national women’s 3x3 wheelchair basketball team will vie for the gold medal in the 13th ASEAN Para Games. The Pilipinas Lady Warriors booked a ticket to the final after a hard-fought 8-4 victory over Laos at Hall 1 of Terminal 21 Korat in Thailand.

Reaching the final was no easy task for the squad of Patricia Camille Castro, Jean Delos Reyes, Cecella Wells, Rhebylyn Aniban, and Lorna Lilagan after three straight losses in the elimination round. The Lady Warriors needed to beat the Laotians by at least four points to secure a spot in the championship round. “Sobrang sarap ng pakiramdam kasi ito ang namimiss ko since the first year. Ito natalaga iyun dahil sa mga miss opportunities namin,” an emotional Castro said after the game. “Thank You Lord. First po namin ito since 2018 noong sumali kami sa Indonesia. Talagang this is a breaking moment.”

The Lady Warriors started the game with a 3-0 lead before Laos fired four straight points to take the lead. Castro then led the Philippines’ five-point swing down the stretch to take the win. Later in the day, the men’s team made it a double final after beating Malaysia, 13-11 in the semifinal, leading head coach Vernon Perea proud of what both squads have achieved. “It’s a blessing not only for the wheelchair teams and hopefully, ma-inspire ang ibang mga teams na maglalaro pa lang after ng opening ceremony sa 20th,” Perea said.

Both the men’s and women’s squads will face Thailand in the gold medal match on Wednesday at the same venue.

Source: news.abs-cbn.com