Paul Bascon also made a breakthrough in his first SEA Games stint.
All Nesthy Petecio needed were 90 seconds of boxing.
Within that span, Petecio was able to size up and knockout Laos’ Minavanh Oupaxa in the Southeast Asian Games boxing tournament’s featherweight (57kg) class on Monday.
“Hindi po [in-expect manalo this way]. Pero sinabihan ako ng coaches ko na control ko muna ‘yung laro, 'wag araruhin kaagad, at pag-aralan muna," said Petecio after the bout, sharing their team's cautious game plan.
That plan, of course, had a leeway for Petecio to show her power. And when they found that chance, they grabbed it.
"Sabi nga ng coach [mula sa corner], ‘Sige, tapusin mo na kung kaya mo,’” added Petecio.
It started with a lead left in the first minute of the opener which led to a standing eight.
Like a lion stalking her prey, Petecio stayed patient, waiting for the perfect moment to strike anew and when she did, it was all over in Cambodia.
The Tokyo Olympics silver medalist is now assured of at least a bronze medal after advancing to the semifinals.
Earlier, Paul Bascon also punched a ticket to the penultimate stage of the 60kg division with a split decision win over Vietnam’s Thanh D.
Unlike Petecio, though, Bascon had a tough time.
Bascon bucked a sloppy opening salvo after attacking with reckless abandon in the deciding round in the hope of turning things around.
His perseverance paid off. His foe looked visibly worn down from all the assault, giving him a lot of openings for a slew of vicious attacks that spelled the difference.
“Pilit lang po tsaka diskarte. Nakita ko openings niya kasi pagod na rin siya,” said the SEA Games first timer.
Petecio and Bascon are two of 3 Filipinos who advanced to the semifinals on the third day of boxing hostilities in Cambodia. The other one was Carlo Paalam, who scored a unanimous decision win over Malaysia’s Daleoniel McDelon Bong.
But while they are moving on to the next round, Mark Lester Durens dropped the 48kg quarterfinal match against Indonesia’s Dio Koebanu.
All five judges scored 29-28, in favor of Koebanu.
(With reports from Miguel Dypiangco)
(GM)