4 Warriors join Bacchus

Four players of the University of the East – Hans Thiele, James Martinez, Pari Llagas and Mark Fampulme – hope to put their sad UAAP finals experience behind and look forward for a fresh start when they join Bacchus Energy Drink in the coming PBL First Conference.

The four along with veterans Marcy Arellano and Mark Borboran played stellar roles that helped the UE Warriors score a rare sweep of the two-round elims, posting an amazing 14-0 record.

Unfortunately, the Warriors were swept by the La Salle Archers in their best-of-three title series.

But with the four rookies determined to gain more experience against seasoned players from various teams – Harbour Centre, Hapee Toothpaste, San Mig Coffee, Toyota Balintawak, Lina Group of Companies and newcomer Pharex, the UE Warriors are expected to be more dangerous in the next UAAP season.

“UE has a good basketball program so I decided to take some of its players,” said coach Lawrence Chongson. “They’re talented so they have a good chance of making it big in the league.”

Having rookie players in the team is another challenge Chongson wants to face head-on, saying: “Ito ay malaking pagsubok, pero hindi namin ito aatrasan.”

Other former UE players in the Bacchus squad are Robert Labagala and Angelus Raymundo. Other members of the team are Letran’s Rey Guevarra and Hafer Mondragon and Jose Rizal University’s Mark Cagoco. Kenneth Coyukang, Rey Mendoza, Mike Dizon and Josh Urbiztondo are expected to provide experience and additional firepower to the team.

Team manager Achit Kaw is likewise upbeat of the team’s chances although he emphasized that they have to work hard and play smart to realize their modest goal of making it to the semis.