SEVEN-TIME DEFENDING Champion Adamson Lady Falcons showed their superiority as they cruised through the Ateneo Lady Eagles, 11-1 by mercy rule in the 4th inning on Saturday, February 11 at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium in Manila.
Adamson dealt most of their damage in the first inning, where they brought in 6 runs in 11 at-bats.
Leadoff hitter Lorna Adorable, who was an impressive 3 for 3, was the first runner sent home on an RBI single by Calumbres. One batter later, Lamata brought home 2 runs on a double that was hit towards center field. Cantor then avenged the team’s second out by getting a 2 RBI triple to right field that extended the lead to 5-0.
The Lady Falcons’ final point of the inning came on a groundball that looked set to give them their final out. However, a beautiful dive by Benabaye at 1st base allowed a 6th run to score for Adamson.
Ateneo avoided a shutout by scoring a run in the top of the 2nd inning. Gabby Macatulad took 1st on a base on balls. Left-Fielder Clarisse Dacanay sent Macatulad to 3rd by hitting a single on the right field line which was followed by an error at first allowing Macatulad to trot home.
However, the Lady Falcons poured it on in their next three chances to go on the offensive. A Ursabia in-the-park homerun gave them a run in the 2nd. Their third inning consisted of two runs, first from an RBI triple by Adorable, then a second RBI single from Calumbres.
They calmly finished off the game in the bottom of the 4th after a sacfly and RBI single extended the lead to 10, thus enforcing the mercy rule.
The Lady Falcons take a familiar spot atop the standings of the University Athletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 79 Softball Championship with this win, their second mercy rule victory in a row.
On the other side, The Lady Eagles fall to the bottom of the standings, losing their 4th game in eight days, and their second mercy rule loss in a row.
Despite the tough start, Coach Dione Macasu stayed positive of her team, as she resigned to the fact that the Lady Falcons’ track record foreshadowed this type of performance.
“I think kaya naman bumawi sa susunod na game namin vs NU at UE. Less error lang, lalaban yung team (I think we can make up for this in our next games vs NU and UE. The team just needs less errors and they will put up a fight.),” she said, pointing out that those will likely be close games.
The Lady Eagles will hope to keep pace with rest of the competition as they search for their first win against the National University Lady Bulldogs. That game will be on Monday, February 13 at 8AM in the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.
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