PHL lady archers shock Vietnam in thrilling shoot-off

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PIA Bidaure, Abby Bidaure and Phoebe Amistoso of Team Philippines won the gold for the women’s recurve-team during the 31st SEA Games held in Hanoi, Vietnam. — PSC/NONILON REYES

HANOI — Archery contributed its first gold to the Philippine campaign in the 31st Southeast Asian (SEA) Games on Wednesday, nipping top seed Vietnam 26-25 in a thrilling shoot-off for the women’s team recurve title at the Hanoi National Training Center.

Abby Bidaure, 20, emerged as the heroine for Team Philippines, hitting the bullseye in the final arrow of the shoot-off for a 10 with just 10 seconds left on the clock, eliciting loud cheers from other members of the team who gingerly watched the thrilling showdown from behind.

The winning team, which included Ms. Bidaure’s sister, Pia, and Phoebe Amistoso, battled back with a 57-49 win in the fourth frame after trailing 1-2 in the first three, forcing a shoot-off that came down to Abby’s winning shot.

Pia, who won her first SEA Games gold in her third try, expected Abby to hit the bullseye and make the difference in the tightly-fought contest.

The archery squad gets a chance to shoot for its second gold on Thursday when it battles Malaysia in the finals of the compound bow mixed team event.

Shooting a perfect last end, the team of Paul dela Cruz and Jennifer Jing Chan came from behind to edge Thailand 155-154 in the semis last Tuesday while the Malaysians beat Vietnam 154-152.