The UST Junior Golden Sox’s title-retention hopes came to an end after they exited the UAAP Season 88 high school boys’ baseball tournament with a 10-7 defeat to the PAREF Southridge Admirals on Monday, Feb. 16, at Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.
The Junior Golden Sox, champions in Season 82, wound up fourth with a 4-4 slate, while Southridge created a three-way tie at the top with a 5-3 record alongside the De La Salle Zobel Junior Green Batters and NU Nazareth School Bullpups.
DLSZ secured the tiebreaker, meaning the winner between Southridge and NUNS will advance to face DLSZ in the finals.
UST topped the first-round eliminations but faltered in the second round with back-to-back losses to DLSZ and NUNS.
In their final outing, the Junior Golden Sox out-hit Southridge, 9-3, yet eight errors compared with the Admirals’ two spelled the difference.
With a 5-0 lead entering the seventh inning, the Junior Golden Sox saw their advantage slip away as the Admirals strung together three consecutive hits from Matt Genota, Yano Antonio, and Joaquin Salvador to tie the score at 5-all in the seventh.
UST answered in the bottom half behind hits from Isaac Tolentino and Jess Mark De Leon to regain a slim 7-5 lead.
However, the Junior Golden Sox committed a crucial fielding error when second baseman Marcus Dela Cerna allowed Southridge to reach base.
UST’s defense unraveled further after three more errors paved the way for a Southridge comeback, as the Admirals scored five more runs to seal the 10-7 victory.
Antonio, Tolentino, and De Leon had two RBIs apiece. Three pitchers tried to hold Southridge, but Van Joshua Ibabao was charged with the loss after surrendering five unearned runs in the eighth inning.
The Junior Golden Sox captured their first title in Season 80, when high school baseball was introduced as a regular sport in the league.
They added another championship in Season 82 in 2019 before the competition went on a six-year hiatus.
Before the UAAP season, they represented the Philippines at the 2025 Babe Ruth World Series in Ocala, Florida.
