By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The Iloilo Kisela Knights showed no mercy and pounced on Palawan and Tacloban in another scheduled game day of the 2022 Professional Chess Association of the Philippines (PCAP) third conference tournament last November 19, 2022.
Fresh off a 1-1 split outing during their past outing last week, the Kisela Knights took down Palawan, 12.5-8.5, and decimated Tacloban, 18-3.
Iloilo banked on their signature hot start in the first seven playing boards against Palawan and immediately clinched a 4.5-2.5 lead.
Four-straight wins spearheaded by NM Rolly Parondo Jr. and Karl Viktor Ochoa sparked the Iloilo offense continued by WFM Cherry Ann Mejia and NM Cesar Mariano.
After a good start in the blitz category, the Kisela Knights received a closer fight from the Palawan stars that turned the rapid category into a nip-and-tuck affair.
However, a crucial back-to-back win streak in the fourth and fifth playing board in the rapid category sealed the deal for Iloilo courtesy of NM Fritz Bryan Porras and NM Mariano.
Meanwhile, against Tacloban, the Kisela Knights went beast mode and grabbed all the leads in both the rapid and the blitz categories.
Tacloban looked to pull off a couple of surprises in the first seven playing boards when they kept the game close, 4-3.
Iloilo then took full control of the game after a jaw-dropping three-board winning streak sparked by NM Giovanni Mejia and Ochoa.
The Kisela Knights sent the early exclamation point when they won in the fourth and fifth playing board which ballooned their lead to 10-0.
Iloilo will have the chance to extend their winning streak to four when they face CMOCA and Cebu on November 23, 2022.
