SOUTHEAST Asian Games veteran Nathaniel Perez reclaimed the No. 1 spot in men's individual foil after he scored a 15-10 win over Tipoy Felipe in the final round of the Philippine Fencing Association (PFA) National Open third leg on Sunday at the PhilSports Arena (formerly Ultra) in Pasig City.

Perez, who placed third during the second leg a few months back, proved to be the more experienced fencer. He topped his opening round pools with a perfect 5-0 card and the highest +25 index.
After earning a bye in the Round of 32, Perez easily scored an easy 15-0 win against Marion Gamila of De La Salle University in the Last 16. He duplicated the same score in the Table of 8 against James Lim of University of the East, before coming out with a 15-4 victory over Kulai Felipe in the Final Four.
The Felipe brothers, teammates of Perez in the last SEA Games, finished 2-3 in this third peg, while second leg No. 1 Sammuel Tranquilan — silver medal winner during the last biennial meet in Cambodia — finished fourth overall.
Tranquilan lost to Kulai Felipe twice, first in the semifinals and then in their face-off to determine the third placer in this meet organized by the PFA.
In men's saber, national team member CJ Concepcion defeated Philippine Team teammate Daniel Villanueva with a thrilling 15-14 win in the finals. John Paul Dairo, also of the national team, and Donnie Arth Navarro of University of Santo Tomas placed third and fourth, respectively.