PAREJA-PECAÑA PAIR NG TUGUEGARAO KUMINANG SA BVR BUBBLE

SANTA ANA, Cagayan — Naghatid ang Tuguegarao ng isa sa inspirational stories sa BVR on Tour bubble dito.

Pinagbidahan nina AJ Pareja at James Pecaña, bumawi ang Tuguegarao sa katatapos na second leg nang pumangalawa sa Creamline 1 tandem nina Jude Garcia at Krung Arbasto sa highly-competitive men’s division.

Ang pagkatawan sa Tuguegarao ay isang bagay na labis na ipinagpasalamat ng 6-foot-4 na si Pareja sa loob ng dalawang linggo kung saan sumabak sila ni Pecaña sa bubble.

“We couldn’t be more thankful for the trust that Tuguegarao gave us to represent. Me and Henry have been working since April of this year when we decided to pair up and it has been such an honor representing and bringing a medal for Tuguegarao!” ani Pareja.

Para makalagpas sa  pool stage, na hindi nagawa nina Pareja at Pecaña sa first leg, nalusutan ng Tuguegarao ang tatlong three-setter matches upang umabante sa knockout rounds.

“Those 3-setter matches really made us look into our own strengths and weakness as a pair as well as reassess our mindset for each game. It made is realize more how to pace ourselves when to go all out or when to slow down which is still very much a work in progress for us,” sabi ni  Pareja, na isa ring doktor.

Maraming natutunan ang Tuguegarao sa kanilang karanasan sa first leg, kabilang ang pagkatalo sa Negros Occidental Beach Volleyball Club.

Naiganti nina Pareja at Pecaña ang kanilang first leg defeat kina Eljhay Ronquillo at Deanne Neil de Pedro sa second leg na naging turning point ng kampanya ng Tuguegarao.

“The first leg finish was more mental than physical in a way that we were so pressured to play a perfect game because we both wanted to prove something to the local beach volleyball scene. We let the pressure get the best of us to the point that we are both nitpicking each one’s errors making us work against each other instead of working together,” ayon kaynPareja.

“The second leg we let go of that pressure to play perfectly and we (me and Henry) became more open to each other’s short comings in game,” dagdag ng dating UAAP MVP.

Sa runner-up finish ng Tuguegarao, kumpiyansa si Pareja na ang kanyang  partnership kay Pecaña ay magniningning sa domestic at international competitions sa hinaharap.

Ang Tuguegarao bets ay isa sa mga kinatawan ng bansa sa Asian Senior Beach Volleyball Championships sa Nov 23-27 sa Phuket, Thailand.

“We are very confident that with the program we are currently following, our world tour dreams is an attainable reality. This is just the beginning for the both of us and the rest of my Indios Beach Volleyball Crew!” sabi ni Pareja, patungkol sa kanilang koponan. CLYDE MARIANO