AFTER TIGHT fixtures for the Ateneo Baseball Team (ABT) in their previous two outings, the Blue Eagles finally pulled through with a close victory to complete their elimination round sweep of the National University (NU) Bulldogs, 5-4. The match was held last night at the UP Diliman Baseball Field in Quezon City.
With today’s result, the Blue and White improved to a 3-3 record and soared to third place in the current University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 86 standings.
Following two runless innings from both sides to open the contest, the Blue Eagles pounced in the bottom of the third with a spectacular showing to get on the board.
Enzo Montemayor and Geoff Magsadia opened the scoring in the third frame, both stealing home off an error, 2-0. Joining the party, a run batted-in (RBI) hit by Matthew San Juan added to the impressive 3-0 inning for Ateneo.
The succeeding frames were reminiscent of the opening innings, with neither side giving in to their excellent pitching display, which was led by Joshua De Juras on the side of the Blue Eagles.
However, the Bulldogs finally stepped up in the sixth and seventh innings, scoring three runs courtesy of left fielder Jherick Timban, second baseman John Kiel Olazo, and first baseman Herald Tenorio.
Although Pablo Capati’s grounder at the bottom of the sixth gave the Blue Eagles a run, Ateneo’s lead was trimmed to just one by the conclusion of the seventh inning, 4-3.
Following the sudden outburst by NU, another run from catcher Kent Altajeros at the top of the eighth was still not enough to deter the Blue and White. As the match tied at four, the Blue Eagles responded with an RBI by Joaquin Mendoza, resulting in Zeke Laygo scoring for the Blue and White at the bottom of the eighth, returning their cushion to one, 5-4.
With Ateneo keeping the Bulldogs at bay at the top of the ninth, the Blue Eagles managed to escape with a tight 5-4 victory to begin their second-round campaign.
The Blue and White hope to build on this momentum as they face the Adamson University Soaring Falcons on Sunday, March 17, at 3:00 PM at the same venue.
Inning Scores:
NU: 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 1 0 – 4
Ateneo: 0 0 3 0 0 1 0 1 x – 5
Current Standings (W-L):
- UST Golden Sox (4-2)
- DLSU Green Batters (4-2)
- ATENEO Blue Eagles (3-3)
- NU Bulldogs (3-3)
- UP Fighting Maroons (2-4)
- AdU Soaring Falcons (2-4)