The Ateneo Baseball Team made history in Season 75 after grabbing the University’s first ever UAAP baseball title. Throughout the next four years, the team garnered three more titles, establishing a dynasty in the UAAP with four championships in five seasons. However, the dynasty’s most memorable moment came in the final game of Season 79, when the Blue Eagles slugged through five hours and 12 innings to win their fourth and latest championship.
After a dominant showing in the elimination round, the Blue Eagles booked a finals meeting against the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Growling Tigers, as both schools finished at the top of the elimination round standings. In game one of the best-of-three title series, Ateneo dominated UST, putting on a batting clinic to win, 9-2.
“Yung maganda sa game na yan, the whole team delivered. Look at the score sheet, all our players delivered and [the pitching and rotating] worked for us.”
Ateneo Baseball Program Director Randy Dizer
At the start of game two, it seemed as if the Blue Eagles had a clear path to the crown. Carrying the momentum of their excellent hitting in game one, the Blue Eagles stormed to a huge 9-3 lead at the end of five and a half innings. However, unlike in game one, UST did not go down without a fight. Capitalizing on Ateneo’s rookie pitcher, Miggy Angeles, the Growling Tigers slowly mounted their comeback to even the score at 9-all at the bottom of the seventh, setting up a thrilling finish to the game.
In the extra innings, with the score tied at 11-all, UST gained the upper hand after loading the bases at the bottom of the 10th. However, with ace pitcher Paulo Macasaet on the mound, the Blue Eagles effectively stopped UST’s chance to take the lead. On defense, the Growling Tigers had exhausted all their bench players at this point and had no choice but to use pitchers as position players. “Bilog yung bola (The ball is round), anything can happen. Pero mga (But the) players, our athletes, they understand na ubos na ang kalaban (that our opponents are depleted),” shared Ateneo Baseball Program Director Randy Dizer.
In the 12th inning, veteran Gino Tantuico pulled off a two runs batted in (RBI) double, sending Marco Mallari and Javi Macasaet home. Rookie Kiko Andaya followed this up with an RBI single to put Ateneo up, 14-11.
With their backs against the wall, UST tried to pull off one last run. However, Paulo Macasaet sealed the deal with excellent pitching as the Blue Eagles captured their fourth title in five years.
Dizer admitted that it was one of the hardest and most memorable games of Ateneo’s dominant run. For him, what pushed his team over the edge was having everyone buy into the team’s winning mentality. “Yung maganda sa game na yan (What was good about that game is) the whole team delivered. Look at the score sheet, all our players delivered, and [the pitching and rotating] worked for us,” said Dizer.
While the Ateneo Baseball Team’s golden era may have come to an end, game two of Season 79’s finals series will forever be etched in Ateneo baseball’s folklore.
