It only took Charisse Nixie “Chase” Orozco a month after graduation before she was introduced as one of the newest faces of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Season 94’s courtside reporting team. The alumna of Tomasian Media Circle and Talents and occasional host is set to headline the opening season this July 7, Saturday, marking her first-ever stint in sports broadcasting.

“Actually, hindi talaga ako nag-start sa reporting eh. Sa hosting ako nag-start,” Orozco told TomasinoWeb.

Asked how her program in the Faculty of Arts and Letters, Literature, made her discover an opportunity in NCAA, she admitted that it was through Gretchen Ho’s tweet that made her decide to give reporting a try.

“Nalaman ko ‘yung audition for NCAA through my friend. Nag-tweet kasi si Gretchen Ho about it and pinakita niya sa akin, so I decided to give it a shot.”

Although this will be her first time working with game updates and live actions, the 20-year-old fresh graduate already has an understanding in sports and hosting, given her history, which allows her to get easily accustomed with her job.

“I pursued this track kasi ever since bata ako, na-expose na ako ng parents ko sa sports—badminton and volleyball. Yung dad ko, he watches basketball a lot. Kumbaga, ang saya lang sa feeling na yung love mo (sic.) for sports and public speaking, magagawa ko siya as courtside reporter,” Orozco shared.

A chance of actually fulfilling her dream—and a promising one—of becoming a courtside reporter was not enough to calm her passionate heart; there were still doubts that almost held Orozco back.

“After nung audition, halos two weeks ako [naghintay] ng call back, to the point na ang iniisip ko na noong time na yun was baka may nakuha na,” she said.

“I tried applying to different companies na rin. I already got a job offer from a company I was eyeing on pero I turned it down kasi dream ko talaga maging courtside reporter. Nandon yung what ifs and fear pero I still chose to take a risk.”

Now that Orozco is about to enjoy her run in delivering news bits on the court, she is more than ready to step on the spotlight as she expects great things ahead for the league.

“I’ll do my best to give the viewers the perspective that they don’t see on cam. Perspective from the sidelines kumbaga. I also want to be an instrument wherein I can share the success stories of the players in their journey throughout the season. Basta ako, I really want to do a good job and deliver good quality of reports,” she vowed.

“I have high expectations for the upcoming season because most of the teams improved. This year’s league is really exciting and I’m sure the games will be intense.”

If there is one thing that Orozco wants to say to all the aspiring courtside reporters, it would be: “Taking a leap of faith is already half the battle.”

“Believe in yourself and everything else will follow. If an opportunity comes up, grab it! Invest, focus and have faith in yourself. I always remind myself na wala namang mawawala sa pag-try ng isang bagay,” she encouraged everyone to step out of their comfort zone.

 

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UST Teletigers E-Sports Club remained kings of the collegiate league after a 3-2 win against the De La Salle University (DLSU) Viridis Arcus in the League of Legends Varsity League Spring Term at the Garena Philippines Inc. World Plaza in Taguig, Sunday.

Teletigers head coach and Institute of Information and Computing Sciences (IICS) student Benson Arcano explained that the pressure of defending their title motivated them to score a win for UST.

“We wanted to win so that we can retain the championship for UST. Even though we are not recognized by UST as an official representative of the [U]niversity, it still gives us pride to say that we retained the championship carrying the name of UST [on] our backs,” Arcano told TomasinoWeb in an online interview.

UST finished top seed in the elimination round and had an outright semi-finals birth in which they quickly dispatched sixth-seed AMA-QC Clash Masters.

“We didn’t crumble under pressure. We played the game like best of one and corrected our mistakes. Our ability to adjust and adapt made us secure the championship again,” Arcano said.

DLSU, on the other hand, finished at fourth and muscled their way to the finals after beating fifth-seed ADU Penguin Authority in the quarterfinals and second-seed BULSU Golsu X in the semifinals.

“For games 1 and 2, it was not the DLSU team that we were expecting. They were not on par for a championship team. But I know that they adjusted well and got games 3 and 4 to force a game 5,” the Teletigers coach explained.

Game 5 was quickly sealed in favor of the Teletigers after dominating clashes and strategically defending key points in the map.

UST’s Espiegle champion, Kai’Sa, proved to be the difference, scoring a pentakill during the final clash and securing the win for UST.

The E-Sports Club is composed of Faculty of Arts and Letters student Theo Ignacio as team captain and support player, and IICS students Van Andre Rinchon, Brussel Isidro, Wilmer Ting, and Isaiah Loberiza as top lane, jungler and mid-lane players, respectively.

Mike Laurence Padilla from College of Tourism and Hospitality Management plays AD-Carry in the bottom lane, while Jan Edward Hortizuela mans as bottom lane support player.

“We are not asking for UST’s full support, but a little recognition can really help us in boosting our morale for the upcoming tournaments where we represent our university,” Arcano expressed.

 

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The University of Santo Tomas Golden Tigresses pulled a shocker against the NU Lady Bulldogs, 22-25, 25-22, 25-21, 25-9, to keep their Final Four bid alive in the UAAP Season 80 women’s volleyball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Sunday.

Tied at 5-all in the fourth set, the España-based squad took advantage of NU’s defensive woes, unleashing a whooping 20-4 surge to easily close the game with a lopsided victory, 25-9.

UST’s net defense overwhelmed the Lady Bulldogs as the Tigresses tallied 12 total blocks compared to NU’s five.

UST Head Coach Emilio “Kung Fu” Reyes highlighted his players’ major improvements on the game, but he stated that the process doesn’t stop with their latest win.

“This time medyo nagiging maganda ang resulta ng mga pinaghihirapan namin, at halos lahat ng mali naicocorrect na namin,” he said. “Pero hindi naman kami tumitigil doon siyempre.”

“Every game, nag-concentrate kami at pinagbubuti ng bawat players yung mga ginagawa nila, especially sa mga roles nila,” Reyes continued.

UST had the comfortable edge in the first set after capitalizing on NU’s eight errors, 22-19.

However, NU took advantage of UST’s collapse down the stretch, rallying a 6-0 run to reach the set point, 22-25.

Cherry Rondina led the Tigresses with 25 points while Milenna Alessandrini registered 19 markers.

NU’s Jaja Santiago scored game-high 27 points in a losing effort.

UST’s second straight victory now earns them a 4-7 win-loss slate, while NU’s second-round woes continue after suffering their fourth straight loss.

“Nakuha naman namin ang respeto sa mga sarili namin especially doon sa mga bata na ‘to, kasi sila talaga yung nakataya diyan,” Reyes explained.

The Tigresses will try to continue their momentum against the Ateneo Lady Eagles on Apr. 4, Sunday, at the same venue.

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