After topping the standings in Round 1, the UST Junior Golden Sox stumbled to a second consecutive defeat to start Round 2, falling to the De La Salle-Zobel Junior Green Batters, 12-7, in the UAAP high school boys’ baseball tournament on Saturday, Feb. 7, at Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.
UST slid into a tie for third place with PAREF Southridge at 3-3 after also losing to the NU Bullpups in the second-round opener, while De La Salle-Zobel improved to second place at 4-2.
The Junior Golden Sox struggled in the fourth inning after issuing seven walks, allowing four hits and committing one error while cycling through four pitchers.
The Junior Green Batters capitalized on the miscues, scoring nine runs to build a commanding 10-2 lead.
UST attempted a rally in the bottom of the fourth and fifth innings, scoring a combined four runs, but fell short as La Salle-Zobel relievers Aljun Tapia and Andrei Valeros kept them at bay, limiting the comeback to a 10-6 deficit.
Pitchers Eugene Hermozura, Marcus Tolentino, Miguel Adorio and Joshua Ibabao combined to walk 12 La Salle-Zobel batters and surrendered 10 hits.
The Junior Golden Sox will look to bounce back when they face Ateneo on Wednesday, Feb. 11, at the same venue.
