PMG DAY 3: SANTOS LIFTS FIRST MEDALS FOR GUAM

By Charlotte Oh

KOROR, Palau – In a super busy Day 3 of the 2025 Pacific Mini Games, Chloe Santos earned Guam’s first medals, one gold and two silvers in weightlifting at the Meyuns Sports Complex.

Santos was well aware of her goal going into the competition, “I came in with the mind that I wanted to win a medal…, so it’s not too much of a surprise. It was a lot of preparation, so I’m really happy right now.”

Lifting in the Women’s 53kg category, she snatched an impressive 71kg for gold, her very first medal in an international competition. In the clean and jerk, Santos continued her outstanding performance, lifting 80kg to earn her a silver. With a combined total of 151kg, Santos placed second overall, winning herself three medals in just one day.

Santos reflected on the tough journey, “A lot of work was put into it, a lot of training, and a lot of crying and sweating. It’s been fun, but it’s been a very difficult road.” However, her career isn’t finished, “It’s very gratifying, but of course not done yet. I wanna come out with gold next time.”

Santos was Guam’s only weightlifter to compete today, with teammates Jacinta Sumagaysay, Nissan Lujan, and Dave Bautista preparing for their turn to step onto the stage soon.

Baseball

After days of rain, the young Guam baseball team stepped onto the Nippon Baseball Stadium for their first game against the PMG defending champions, the Northern Mariana Islands. It was an exciting game for the crowd, but Guam ultimately fell short by just one run, 7-6. The NMI baseball team has history with Guam, earning gold in the championships in the last Mini Games and leaving Guam with silver. 

The men faced nerves in their opening game, down 4-1 after five innings. However, the team found a burst of spirit in an exhilarating sixth inning. The men came running home, scoring five points in the single inning and putting them ahead at 6-4. Unfortunately, at the bottom of the seventh, NMI clawed back with three runs to take the 7-6 win. 

Bouncing back from a tough loss earlier in the day, the Guam baseball team overpowered Fiji in their 5 pm matchup, securing a commanding 10-0 shutout victory. They finished their opponents in just five innings, coming in with six runs at the bottom of the fifth. It was an exhilarating game for the crowd, with Guam’s momentum appearing unstoppable. The team put on a spectacular show, proving their ability to represent Guam with pride and perseverance. 

Swimming

Once again, swimmer Mia Lee advanced to the finals in the Women’s 50m Butterfly, making the cut at fifth place with a time of 29.29 seconds. Lee swam a 29.17 to place fifth in the Women’s 50m Butterfly final. 

Guam swimmers are continuing to work hard and strive for a medal. Amaya Bollinger, who set a personal record in Women’s 100m Butterfly yesterday, shared her excitement at the pool, “In the coming days I hope to continue to do my best with my team and  make more PRs. This meet is fun and I want to keep up the good vibes until the last day.” She added, “Any meet with the other islands is always fun and exciting so I hope that continues to be the case in the upcoming future.”

Va’a

Guam paddlers showed up to the ramp for longer distance races today. In the V6 1500m final, the men and women came in sixth with times of 9:49.08 and 10:40.08, respectively.

In the V1 Marathon 16km finals, Aiden Artero finished in seventh place with a time of 1:52:18.00.

Softball

Guam’s softball faced tough opponents in the field this morning. Playing American Samoa, Guam couldn’t keep up and fell 10-3.

Beach Volleyball

Both Guam’s men’s and women’s beach volleyball teams kicked off their first day on the sand with two impressive victories.

On the men’s side, Ryan Eugenio and Kåna Sgambelluri took down Kiribati with ease, winning in straight sets: 25-15, 25-14. Despite a few unforced errors, the pair worked together skillfully to put up smart plays against their smaller opponents. 

Eugenio reflected on their first game, “It feels like we were shaking off some cobwebs, just trying to find our rhythm. Hopefully we’ll bring that into the next games, but overall we felt like we did okay.” Sgambelluri, playing his first international competition, added, “Definitely could’ve done better, but it feels good to start off strong with the first win.” 

Although the duo appeared in sync throughout the entire game, it was their first time playing together as a team. Eugenio shared, “We’re a new pair, so as much practice as we had, we’re still trying to figure each other out.” Both players gave credit to one another post-match, acknowledging their growing partnership and reliance on each other’s strengths.

On the women’s side, Austia Mendiola and Kristen Serrano faced tougher opponents than the men, battling a 3 set thriller against Tahiti, ultimately coming out on top to win 21-14, 14-21, 15-8. Drawing from their recent Division 1 collegiate experience, the pair played with intensity and spirit like no other.

Despite falling behind in the second set, the pair came back with determination to win the third set in style. “We feel good. Honestly, we have some little minor adjustments we have to make, but I’m really proud with how fiery we came out,” Mendiola shared

Their chemistry was unmatched as Serrano put up huge blocks and powerful swings at the net while Mendiola anchored the backcourt with relentless defense, digging up tough shots left and right. Although never playing beach volleyball together, the two have known each other for years. Serrano shared, “I’m super happy with the fight. I think our chemistry really helps a lot. We keep talking with each other, it helps us stay stimulated throughout the whole match. So, we’re just pushing each other and having fun.”

The pair is determined to keep up the energy in the following days. Serrano noted what it takes to come out on top in these games, “I think we’re looking out for every team. You know, every team wants to win, and so we wanna win as well. It’s a matter of who works the hardest and who hustles the most and puts more effort in. That’s the plan for the whole tournament.”

Mendiola added, “I think that we are just super excited and super grateful to be here. We love this kinda stuff. Just getting to represent Guam at this level and on this stage is such a blessing, so we’re just very excited to be here. We’re gonna go hard every single game no matter who it’s against.”

3v3 Basketball

Guam’s 3v3 basketball faced tough and tall opponents, but played with an aggressive spirit nonetheless. The women’s team took another victory against the Marshall Islands. The results are as follows:

Men’s Team

Guam vs Vanuatu: 14-20

Guam vs Fiji: 15-17

Women’s Team

Guam vs Marshall Islands: 18-16

Guam vs Papua New Guinea: 11-14

DAY 4 PREVIEW

Softball @ 9:30 am vs PNG
Baseball @ 1:30 pm1 vs Palau
Beach Volleyball (Male) @ 4 pm vs SAM
Basketball (Female) @ 4:15 pm vs Palau
Beach volleyball (Female) @ 5 pm vs NRU
Basketball (Male) @ 5:30 pm vs MI
Basketball (Female) @ 6:15 pm vs PNG
Basketball (Male) @ 7:30 pm vs Fiji