Trench Tech Purebred Saipan’s Trey Manglona and Guam’s Elias Cantu hold their awards after the championship match of the Patgon Jiujitsu Tournament Fall 2023 at the University of Guam Fieldhouse on Saturday.
SAIPAN’S young jiujitsu fighters on Saturday won gold and silver medals in the Patgon Jiujitsu Tournament Fall 2023 at the University of Guam Fieldhouse.
Trench Tech Purebred Saipan’s Trey “King Koa” Manglona defeated Guam’s Elias Cantu in 19 seconds via armbar submission to bring home the gold medal in the 115-pound teen kids division.
Mateo “El Guapo” Almada bested Guam’s Noel-Kai Fejeran before defeating Michael Paul in the semis for the silver medal while 13-year-old Gabriel Mitchel won two silver medals in the Gi and NoGi no weight limit divisions.
Saipan’s eight-year-old Sophia Choi saw action in the Peewee 2 division, but lost 3-8 in her match.
Accompanying the island’s young fighters were their trainers: Trench Tech’s Cuki Alvarez, Frank “The Crank” Camacho and assistant coach Ken Tanzawa.
Manglona said it felt good to represent his family, friends, Trench Tech Purebred and Saipan in a martial arts event on Guam.
His strategy, he added, was to “attack first, be aggressive” and put his opponent into submission.
Almada, for his part, said he felt nervous competing on Guam for the first time.
He said he didn’t know anything about his opponents’ skills or that his opponents could be like “pros” so he listened to the advice of his coaches Cuki and Ken.
Saipan’s Mateo Almada pins Guam’s Michael Paul to the canvass in the semifinal round as Trench Tech Purebred Saipan’s Cuki Alvarez watches.
Saipan’s youngest fighter, Sophia Choi, right, with her Trench Tech Purebred Saipan family: Cuki Alvarez, Gabriel Mitchel, Mateo Almada Frank Camacho and Ken Tanzawa.
