Barriga struggled against Vietnamese foe Huynh Ngoc Viet but came away with a split decision win while Cantancio had an easier time against Laotian opponent Keochi Xayyasone, earning the nod on all three judges’ scorecards.
The 20-year-old Barriga, who owned a convincing victory over his Vietnamese rival from the World Championships in Almaty, Kazakhstan two months ago, had to squeak by this time around after receiving a tougher challenge.
Barriga has also been struggling with jet lag since arriving from his training in Assissi, ITaly as part of the Italia Thunder team in the AIBA World Series of Boxing.
“He also knew my game, and anticipated my left straight,” Barriga said in Filipino. “I felt some tightness in my thighs and couldn’t move well. Luckily I was able to sneak in some of my hooks.”
Cantancio, the oldest of the PLDT-ABAP boxers in the 2013 SEA Games at age 27, won 30-24, 30-24 and 29-28 in a unanimous decision.
All 10 Philippine representatives have made it into at least the semifinals with Nesthy Petecio already in the finals after a win over Thailand’s Tassamalee Thongjan last Monday.
Aside from Barriga and Cantancio, Filipinos Rey Saludar, Mario Fernandez, Dennis Galvan, Wilfredo Lopez, Josie Gabuco, Maricris Igam and Irish Magno are also in the semis of their respective events.
“We offer this to our countrymen who suffered in the recent tragedies,” said ABAP president Ricky Vargas.
“We hope we can win golds to make our gift more special.”
