A Christmas gift tailor-made for herself almost fizzled after a disastrous opening-round loss to a 13-year-old Woman National Master Ruelle ‘Tawing’ Canino from Cagayan de Oro.
But the battle-tested Janelle Mae Frayna, the country's lone Woman Grandmaster, buckled down to work, carving out an impressive showing in the remainder of the 12-player round-robin affair to rule the 2021 Philippine National Women’s Chess Championship concluded last Thursday night at the PACE building in Quezon City.
After holding reigning titlist Woman International Master Jan Jodilyn Fronda to a draw with black in the penultimate round, the 24-year-old Frayna smashed the King’s Indian defense of second-seed Woman Fide Master Shania Mae Mendoza in 43 moves to stay a full-point clear ahead of the field with a total of 8.5 points.
Frayna was quality up and had a dominant queen-side passed-pawn on an a5-square when Mendoza resigned, thus assuring the former of the P50,000 top purse, and more importantly, a slot to next year’s Hanoi Southeast Asian Games.
“She (Frayna) well-deserved it. Fighting back is one mark of a Grandmaster and a true champion,” said Jaime Frias, the coach, and trainer of teen sensation Canino whom the organizing National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) will be groomed to be the next Philippine chess star.
WIM Kylen Joy Mordido split the point with Marian Calimbo in the final 11th-round to hike her total to 7.5 points good for solo second-place worth P30,000.
Despite her defeat to Frayna, Mendoza managed to secure the P15,000 third prize after edging fellow seven-pointers Fronda in the Bucholz tiebreaker.
Fronda was held to a draw by WIM Marie Antoinette San Diego who occupied the fourth-place at 6.5 points.
Completing the overall standings are Mariel Rinoa Sadey and WIM Bernadette Galas at 5 pts, Francois Marie Magpily and WFM Allaney Jia Doroy at 4.5 pts and WNM Lexie Grace Hernandez, WNM Ruelle Canino and Marian Calimbo at 3.5 pts.
