AFTER FALLING to the De La Salle Green Archers in their last game, the Ateneo Blue Batters came back strong by defeating the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons, 14-7, in their third game of the season on January 12, 2014 at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Field.

Ateneo’s slow start on both ends of the field allowed UP to score three quick runs at the top of the second. At the bottom of the same inning however, Ateneo was quickly able to recover as UP’s starting pitcher, G. Rodriguez, committed multiple errors. Rodriguez walked Ateneo’s designated hitter (DH) Dio Remollo to load the bases after already having hit Chip Esguerra and Kevin Ramos with pitches. Rodriguez dug himself into a deeper hole when he followed up on the Remollo walk by also hitting sophomore Leandro Banzon with a pitch. This finally put Ateneo on board, 1-3. Veteran Adriane Bernardo finally ended the hitless streak for the Blue and White as he hit a 2 runs batted in (RBI) double to even up the match, 3-3 at the end of the second.

Though UP would score two more runs in the fourth, Ateneo finally broke away with the lead at the bottom of the fourth through Banzon and Pelos Remollo who quickly advanced through the bases. Back-to-back RBI’s from Bernardo and D. Remollo also provided the much needed spark to cap off the inning and make the score 6-5, in favor of the Ateneo.

The Blue Batters further extended their lead as they scored eight more runs throughout the game while only allowing UP to score two more at the latter part of the match. Bernardo ignited the Ateneo offense by scoring a total of four RBI’s while sophomore Rapho Balagtas provided a strong effort off the bench, stealing a total of three bases. Pitcher Andy Tan also had a good outing as he pitched for seven innings, struck out six and walked only two batters.

The game gives Ateneo a 2-1 win-loss record. The Blue Batters will face the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers on Thursday, January 16, 2014 at 1 PM at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.