Highland squads from Baguio and Benguet will be put to a tough test when they see action in the upcoming Little League Philippines Series national championships beginning April 17.
The tournament, which runs through April 25, has become a proving ground for regional teams like Baguio City, Benguet and even Tarlac City, where coaches and parents are navigating financial and physical hurdles to give their players a shot at a national title.
At least five squads from Baguio, and another from Benguet will test the mettle of some 170 teams from across the archipelago.
Coach Rafael Lapena said Baguio City is also fielding a massive delegation, sending championship-caliber teams from Mabini Elementary School, Dona Aurora National Elementary School, and Baguio City National High School.
“This our way of supporting grassroots of baseball and softball in Baguio,” said Lapena, who also thanked Baguio Councilor Vladimir Cayabas for providing financial assistance to the group.
Lapena said despite the prestige of the event, the road to the championships remains a grassroots struggle.
While the Baguio city government covered the P20,000 registration fee, the burden of uniforms, meals and the eight-hour transport from the mountains to the northern plains fell on the parents.
But even with the meager support, Lapena remains upbeat of their chances as they seek a podium finish in this year’s edition.
“The team is intact, they are well prepared. Ready for battle,” summed Lapena.
A first timer in the Philippine series, Tarlac is also hoping to make a decent finish.
The team was in La Trinidad last week for a skirmish with Baguio and Benguet squads.
Coach Dennis Pimentel, the journey to the Under-16 division represents a milestone for the local program, describing the opportunity to represent the city in this category as a dream come true, following an intensive recruitment process that integrated the best players from across the province to form a 16-player roster.
Pimentel added the trip was designed to build team cohesion and ensure the children would not be intimidated by the scale of the national tournament and fine tune their ball contact and defensive fielding as they eye a potential podium finish in the tournament. Roderick Osis