OCCUPYING the middle ground is not part of their game plan.
But if their 2-2 win-loss record at the end of the first round is any indication, the UST Golden Sox are far from hoisting the white flag in the on-going UAAP Baseball wars.
“Our team is slowly picking up (its) rhythm in each game aside from the fact that the players are learning how to reduce their errors on both offense and defense,” coach Jeffrey Santiago told the Varsitarian. “That is a good sign for us.”
In a grudge match, the Golden Sox pushed defending champion University of the Philippines (UP) to the limit before yielding a close 6-8 decision last Jan. 21 at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.
With only a run to show back in the fourth inning, the Golden Sox struggled for a score against the Maroons’ smooth fielding maneuvers that gave the latter a commanding 1-8 lead, sparked by a four-run binge on top of the sixth inning.
But the España-based batters refused to go quietly into the night and unleashed a late five-run outburst in the seventh inning, capped by a triple play from Alden Lozada, Jake Cumlat, and Israel Ona.
Despite ace pitcher Jon-Jon Robles being relegated to first base because of an injured arm he sustained in a previous match (rookie hurler Mickey Saito took over), UST managed to contain UP’s offensive tirade, surrendering only three hits in the eighth inning.
Earlier in the competition, the Golden Sox dealt surprise front-runner Ateneo de Manila University (Ateneo) its first loss of the season, 4-1, last Jan. 18 to avenge their heartbreaking 3-8 setback against idle National University last Jan. 11. UST notched its first win over Adamson University, 5-4, last Jan. 7.
Still on the hunt
Like the Sox, the UST Softbelles are nailed at third place with a 2-2 win-loss card.
The Softbelles ended their first-round campaign with a close 7-8 loss against defending champion Adamson last Jan. 16 at the UST field.
UST immediately broke the scoring ice as early as the first inning with two runs for a 2-0 edge. But its defensive flaws in the second inning allowed Adamson to tie the count off Yosel Aguilar’s single run.
Both teams then engaged in a see-saw battle until Adamson took a 2-5 edge on a pair of homeruns from Cloice Muyco and Chat Ditchion.
UST would later regain the lead at 7-6 in the ensuing plays, but the Lady Falcons stood firm on the offensive end as Nelsa Delagente triggered a two-run homer in the eighth and final inning to salvage the win.
In earlier games, UST fashioned a 22-1 rout of Ateneo last Jan. 18 to atone for its 0-2 shut-out loss over UP last Jan. 13.
Coach Sandy Barredo’s wards also opened their UAAP bid with murderous abandon in a 22-0 blanking of University of the East last Jan. 6. Anthony Andrew G. Divinagracia
