THE championship games of the Bohol Schools Amateur Athletic Association (BSAAA) for school year 2023-2024 are scheduled today.`
In the Basketball game, BIT International College will fight it out with PMI Colleges, both men and boys. BIT International College Volleyball Teams (Men, Boys/ Women, Girls) will defend the championship titles against University of Bohol today, December 4, 2024 at 9:OO AM at the HNU Gym.
It is a matter of record that BSAAA was organized much earlier than the pandemic. It was originally composed of only four (4) tertiary institutions in the province, namely; BIT International College, Holy Name University, PMI Colleges, and University of Bohol. Later on, Mater Dei College of Tubigon and Trinidad Municipal College of Trinidad joined the group.
The originals of the group?
Rev. Fr. Francisco Estepa of HNU, Atty. Victoriano “Will” Tirol Jr. of UB, Mr. Misoro Salamera of PMI, and Short Cuts of BIT Internatioal College composed the initiators.
What could have been the reasons that prompted the initiators to organize the sports group?
In the late 50s up to the whole of 60s, our province was privileged to have only two colleges, the then Rafael Palma College (now University of Bohol) and Holy Name College (now Holy Name University). And in those years also, these were the only schools in the province that were competing both in Basketball and Volleyball games.
And because these were the only schools in that sports event, the competition seems not only very stiff. The games scheduled for these two colleges could hardly be finished as scheduled.
The games usually ended up either in a fight or a team withdrawing from the games!
Those were the usual occurrence. As a college student in those years, Short Cuts usually witnessed those unfinished games.
Not until the early part of the 60s . . . . .
Short Cuts was taken in as Director of then St. James College (now PMI Colleges) in 1962.
As the new and young administrator of the college, he organized a Basketball Men team of the school in the latter part of the 60s.
If memory does not fail him, Short Cuts invited first the Rafael Palma College Basketball team into a friendly game. As expected, the St. James College team easily yielded to the opponent.
Next to be invited was the Holy Name College Basketball team. Again, Short Cuts’ team was defeated.
In all these two games, no trouble was ever experienced.
Defeat in those two games was never a heartache to Short Cuts. Instead, he felt the joy in knowing that at long last basketball games in Bohol with either RPC or HNC Basketball team as oponent can be finished without any trouble.
The experience that Short Cuts had as the school administrator of St. James College was duplicated when he established his own school, now the BIT International College.
At the early stage of Short Cuts’ school, he alternately invited the Basketball teams of HNU and UB into friendly games.
And, these games gave birth in the organization of the now famous Bohol Schools Amateur Athletic Association.
Long live, BSAAA! Long live the organizers!
