The Philippine men's ice hockey team suffered a heartbreaking loss in the semifinals of the 30th Southeast Asian Games as Singapore secured a 4-3 win Saturday at the SM Mall of Asia Ice Skating Rink in Pasay City.
The Philippines will not be able to defend its title as it got relegated to the bronze medal match against Malaysia scheduled on Sunday. Singapore, on the other hand, advanced to the finals against previous runner-up Thailand.
Team captain Steve Fuglister got the puck rolling for the Philippines at the 10-minute mark of the game. Francois Gautier, assisted by Fuglister and Jan Regencia, followed suit to end the opening period with a 2-0 advantage.
Singapore forced a deadlock after a pair of goals from Bryan Lee and James Kodrowski in the second period.
Christopher Wong, off an assist from Kodrowski, scored the go-ahead goal for the Singaporeans at the 48:13 mark.
The Philippines stayed alive thanks to a last-minute goal from Eishner Sibug for the 3-all tie, but Kodrowski sneaked another point for Singapore with 12 seconds left to seal the victory.
Prior to the semis, the Philippines absorbed its first loss at the hands of Thailand, 10-1, at the end of the preliminary round Friday. This tainted the home team's previously unblemished record following three dominating wins over Malaysia (15-1), Singapore (8-2), and Indonesia (8-1).