Congratulations to the De La Salle Santiago Zobel 10U Basketball Team for winning the Philippine Athletic Youth Association (PAYA) Basketball Championship against a worthy opponent, Ateneo de Manila University last January 26, 2025 at the high school courts of Xavier School in San Juan City. It was a season-long dominant performance by the team sweeping all games and ending the tournament with an unblemished 8-0 record.
The championship game was tightly contested up until the 4th quarter when the Baby Archers pulled away with their suffocating defense holding their opponents scoreless for eight minutes. Egged on by the boisterous parents and supporters, the team did not relent and applied the pressure until the final buzzer. Critical to the team’s success was Coach Jhon Cabulong’s preparation, clear game plan, and timely in-game adjustments. He was ably supported by Coach Noel Engracia and Coach Kane Baylon.
Members of the victorious team are:
from left to right, row 1:
- BRANDON ALEXANDER ALCONABA (DLSZ 2032)
- ED GABRIEL ILANO (DLSZ 2032)
- ISAAC GABRIEL TABU (DLSZ 2033)
- CARLOS PANALIGAN (DLSZ 2033)
- HAJUN YOON (DLSZ 2032)
- JOAKIM PHILIPPE CASTRO ( DLSZ 2033)
- RICHARD ANDRE MELENCIO (DLSZ 2032)
row 2:
- WAYDEN JAMES RIVERA (DLSZ 2033)
- LIAM ISAAC VILLARRUZ (DLSZ 2033)
- JARIEL ESTEBAN CENTENO (DLSZ 2032)
- PEDRO MANOLO MONTES (DLSZ 2032)
- JADEN ANTHONY LEE (DLSZ 2032)
- BRENT BENJAMIN ONGKINGCO (DLSZ 2032)
After years of futility, the PAYA 10U Championship is finally back home in DLSZ. Animo La Salle!
