THE UST Golden Sox thwarted the National University Bulldogs, 11-6, for their first win in the UAAP Season 79 baseball tournament at the Rizal Memorial Stadium Sunday.
UST locked down on defensive with 10 strikeouts, five of them coming from Christian dela Cruz.
The Golden Sox banked on three runs from Alwen Calbang, Jefferson Vergara and Noriel Valencia to seal the victory.
“Maganda ‘yung pinakita ng mga pitchers natin this game. Basta ganoon at nasa atin ang momentum, may tiyansa tayo ngayong season,” head coach Jeffrey Santiago said in an interview.
NU erased a three-point UST lead with three straight points in the sixth inning, 6-all. But two back-to-back conversions from Marlon Gonzales and Max Mercado at the bottom of the inning gave the Golden Sox an 8-6 breather.
Dela Cruz, Gonzales l, and Kirk Daquis scored consecutively from all bases following a walk and a run-batted-in double from Kristian Angeles in the second inning, 3-0, before NU forced a deadlock with three of its players reaching the homeplate in the third inning.
The Golden Sox will face the University of the Philippines on Feb. 15, Wednesday, at the same venue.
