The Spirit of Competition

From the 25th to the 30th of November, the SFUn event was held to mark the ending of the students’ activities during SFU’s 15th anniversary celebration. It was a time for uniting the community together, and to take a break from work to compete and have fun.

There were a bountiful amount of sports and games played over the week. Sports included: Men’s and Women’s Basketball, Mixed Volleyball, Men’s and Women’s Futsal, Men’s Singles, Women’s Singles and Mixed Doubles Badminton. The rally games included: Quidditch, Tug-of-war, Patintero and Dodgeball. In the spirit of competition, teams were made to compete against each other with their own house names. They were the: Blue Titans, Golden Gryphons, Maroon Dragons and the White Foxes. Each team had their respective team cheer, sport and game line-ups, flags, and costumes. Evaluation was based not only on the team’s performance, but also in their participation and discipline as well. Teams and individual players were awarded with their certificates, trophies and medals based on their performances.

Per team I could see the spirit of competition, their performance, their intensity in the games, and the tension in the air when a ball flies, each game was its own highlight in the event. I really felt the passion echoing throughout the gym, whenever a team cheered their members on. Everyone really collaborated together to achieve their goals.

I remember watching the games of SFUn. I never thought the SFU gym could get that loud! Everyone cheering and screaming, players with intense game faces caught on camera, a roar in the hall whenever a ball was thrown or missed. With each second, the game just grew more intense, the tides turning, referee’s whistles blowing, and the victors crowding together to celebrate their glory. The energy never felt more invigorating and positive. It was all in good sportsmanship, since the teams always congratulated each other after each game. 

Best of all, you could find this energy in every single game played. There was never a dull moment in the entire SFUn event. In every face, I know there was a genuine smile of excitement and fun. Even previous Alumni couldn’t help but join in on the fun. They were warmly welcomed to the games and their teams, and appreciated to set foot on SFU grounds once more.

Excellence of all teams was revealed to everyone in each event, and taking a trophy in their name. The champions of the rally games included: The Blue Titans, who displayed their strength in the Tug-of-war event, as well as their speed in Patintero; and the White Foxes brought honour to their house in Quidditch, and in dodge ball with their nimble feet and reflex.

Men’s singles badminton gave us the chance to see a rare and intense fight between players, with Benedict Lasala (Blue Titans) in 1st place, Dan Carlos (White Foxes) in 2nd, and Kyle Joon (Golden Gryphons) for 3rd, emerging as champions. For the women’s single’s badminton, Jewel Magoay (1st place), Dara Romualdez (2nd place), and Ms.Gina Bisco of Marketing Department (3rd place), all hailing from the Blue Titans showed us their skill and earned the right to be named champions.

The mixed doubles badminton champions included: Jasred Bargan and Johrycel Fernandez from the White Foxes (1st place), Mr. Amir Tohid of SOBC and Ms. Cris Borja of HR from the Maroon Dragons (2nd place), and Mr. Fiel Evidente of Treasury and Mary Lojo from the White Foxes (3rd place) joined the hall of champions with the rest of the badminton players. Every badminton champion earned a cash prize, sponsored by Mr. Roger Bartholomew, Chairperson of SFU.

For Men’s Futsal, the Maroon Dragons were crowned as 1st place, with the White Foxes in 2nd, and Blue Titans for 3rd. The MVP title was given to Paul Taylor, hailing from the Maroon Dragons. In Women’s Futsal, the White Foxes took 1st place with Maroon Dragons in 2nd, and Blue Titans for 3rd. The MVP of the event was given to Favour Ajali.

In the realm of Volleyball, the Blue Titans claimed the throne for 1st place, White Foxes for 2nd, and the Maroon Dragons for 3rd. Each game was their own highlight, and the roars of the supporters echoed throughout the gym. The MVP title of volleyball was given to Katsu Sekijima from the Blue Titans. The mythical six players of the volleyball match were, in no specific order: Carlo Puyod (White Foxes), Christine Dogma (White Foxes), Willie Ann Yu (Maroon Dragons), Casey Esguerra (Golden Gryphons), Kei Serrano (Blue Titans), and Audrey Li (Blue Titans).

For Women’s basketball, the MVP title was given to Isabel Gentalian from the White Foxes, as well as Alexi Magallanes for the Men’s Basketball. 

For the Men’s Basketball, Blue Titans won the Championship while White Foxes got the 2nd place and Maroon Dragons placed 3rd. The Mythical five for Men’s Basketball were: Small Forward - Jasred Bargan (White Foxes), Center – Yuuki Kono (Blue Titans), Point Guard - Chef Rico Colar of Bistro Lima (Blue Titans), Power Forward – Jezrel Villasis (Golden Gryphons), Shooting Guard – Paolo Constantino (Maroon Dragons).

In the awarding ceremony, the award for Best Flag was handed to the Maroon Dragons, the Best Cheer, Most Participative, and Most Punctual went to the Blue Titans, while the Gold Gryphons were given the Most Organized award. Ms. SFUn 2013 was and Mr. SFUn 203 was Ross Barnaby McLeod from Blue Titans and Yssah Queto of Maroon Dragons was the Ms. SFUn 2013. The Over-All Champion was Blue Titans garnering 1390 points out of 2000 points from all the activities and games. White Foxes got 1365 points while Maroon Dragons got 1050 points and Golden Gryphons obtained 1005 points.

In retrospect, I believe that SFUn gave us all that we needed: A time to have fun and bond with the community. I’m sure new companionships were made since the event, and newfound respect for each competing team member. Special thanks to SFU Student Council 2013-2014 for organizing such a fun and exciting event. In the end, we all just wanted to get to know each other and ultimately, have the time of our lives…. And we did. SFUn 2013 was truly an event to remember, and left another milestone in SFU history forever.