STA. ROSA, Laguna—In a day marked by razor-thin margins, wild swings and relentless pressure, Zach Villaroman and Jakob Taruc came through in the clutch, salvaging an all-square result in the final pairing to help Team North escape with a nerve-wracking 6 1/2-5 1/2 victory over Team South in Thursday’s Foursomes of the ICTSI Elite Junior Finals here.
The tightly contested match-up capped a rollercoaster Day 2 in this Ryder Cup-style event, showcasing the country’s finest junior golfers. As the sun scorched the pristine fairways of The Country Club, both sides battled not only each other, but also the weight of expectations and the high-stakes format of alternate shot play.
With the team standings at 14-9 heading into the final match, South’s Eric Jeon and Mhark Fernando III looked poised to deliver a crucial point, taking a 1-up lead to the 18th. But on the challenging par-4 finishing hole, Fernando’s 3-iron approach into a stiff headwind found the pond, opening the door for Villaroman and Taruc to steal a half-point with a steady par. They delivered, reaching the green in two and two-putting to snatch the tie and hike Team North’s lead, 14 1/2-9 1/2.
The seesaw battle was emblematic of the day’s drama. While Team North built on its 8–4 Four-ball win from Tuesday to take early control, Team South mounted a fiery comeback, winning key matches late in the day. The tight finishes and bold recoveries made this the most dramatic installment yet in a Finals that continues to defy prediction.
Earlier in the day, North captured six of the first 11 matches, threatening to pull away. But South clawed back in the boys’ 7-10 division with a clean sweep, while also notching pivotal wins in the 11-14 and 15-18 categories. Ralph Batican and Marcus Dueñas exacted revenge on Vito Sarines and Ryuji Suzuki, 2-up, in boys’ 11-14, while Lucas Revilleza and James Rolida stormed back from behind to edge Halo Pangilinan and Asher Abad, 1-up. Ethan Lago and Kvan Alburo also repeated their dominance with a 2&1 victory over Zach Guico and Zoji Edoc in the youngest age category.
On the girls’ side, South’s 15-18 pairs flexed their experience and chemistry once more. Crista Miñoza and Precious Zaragosa cruised to a 3&2 victory, while Tashanah Balangauan and Mikela Guillermo secured a 4&3 rout – both building on their dominant Four-ball performances a day earlier.
Despite South’s late charge, Team North found strength in its younger divisions. The girls’ 7-10 duo of Winter Serapio and Ronee Dungca remained untouchable, dispatching Soleil Molde and Denise Mendoza in just two and a half hours with a commanding 7&6 victory. Minutes later, Mavis Espedido and Tyra Garingalao matched the feat against Claren Quiño and Francesca Geroy.
The back-to-back sweeps from Serapio-Dungca and Espedido-Garingalao – who also won convincingly on Day 1 – gave North critical breathing room heading into Friday’s singles.
“While we considered the players’ personalities when drawing up pairings for team formats, I think we’ll now be focusing on confidence heading into the singles – specifically, who has the mental toughness to go up against the South,” said North captain Francis Talion, who acknowledged that the singles matches present an entirely different battlefield.
“Singles is a different kind of challenge, but the confidence boost we got from our Day 1 win will definitely help build momentum for our players. With that, I believe we can pull this off,” he added.
North also benefited from new pairings in the girls’ 11-14 division, where Mona Sarines and Alexie Gabi edged out Brittany Tamayo and Kimberly Baroquillo, 1-up, and Lisa Sarines and Kendra Garingalao cruised to a 5&4 win over Rafella Batican and Zuri Bagaloyos.
In other boys’ matches, Zianbeau Edoc and Jacob Casuga held off Jared Saban and Ken Guillermo, 2-up, in 11-14 division, while Patrick Tambalque and Kristoffer Nadales outclassed Alexis Nailga and Armand Copok, 4&3, in the premier category.
With a five-point advantage after two days, North heads into Friday’s 24-match singles finale with a sturdy cushion. But both sides know all too well that the singles format is an entirely different arena – one that tests not only skill, but nerve, resilience and mental fortitude.
“Confidence is key,” said Talion. “We’ll look at who’s mentally strong, who has the heart for this fight. The matchups will matter a lot, but what we saw in Day 1 gave us belief that we can finish this strong.”
Still, Talion remains grounded: “I always remind the team to respect the South.”
South captain Alfred Gaccion, on the other hand, remains hopeful and upbeat despite the deficit.
“We played much better today compared to Day 1. The players were able to adjust to both their partners and the course, and they complemented each other’s games well. That really helped boost team morale. We’re expecting a strong showing tomorrow, as it’s their opportunity to bounce back from any miscues over the past two days. Based on how they played today, I’m confident their morale is high and they’re ready,” said Gaccion.
Both sides largely stuck with their original Four-ball rosters, making only minimal adjustments – Team North reshuffled its tandems in the girls’ 11-14 division, while Team South made changes in the girls’ 7-10 category. The tweaks, however, made little difference.
“We weren’t really surprised by the minor changes. South has been consistent with its pairings and clearly trusts the formula it used on Day 1, so we expected only a few adjustments,” said Talion.
For Gaccion, the tweaks were simply to make a few adjustments. “We were quite happy with the result. Although we didn’t fully achieve the goal we were aiming for, we’re still satisfied with the outcome,” he said.
With young stars on both sides already delivering heroic performances, Friday’s singles are set to be a thrilling climax to a tournament already rich in drama.
