DESPITE AN impressive third-inning performance, the Ateneo Baseball Team fell short of the finish line, losing to the National University (NU) Bulldogs, 2-7. The Blue and White’s penultimate bout in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87 was held earlier today at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium in the City of Manila.
The loss sends the already-ran Blue Eagles to a 1-8 record in the win-loss column of the UAAP Season 87 Baseball tournament.
Straight out of the dugout, the Blue Eagles quickly found themselves trailing by a run after Bulldog John Olazo crossed home plate on an error. The situation then worsened with the Katipunan-based sluggers struggling to create solid contact off NU’s Jherick Timban, 0-1.
In response, pitcher Lucas Atendido delivered an outstanding performance on the mound, inducing three groundouts to complete a perfect inning with just three pitches. However, NU mirrored Ateneo’s tempo and held them off at the bottom of the second.
Along with the Bulldogs registering another run at the top of the third, 0-2, the Blue Eagles fell into a predicament with two outs at the bottom. Yet, Matthew San Juan quickly trimmed the deficit after sending a fly ball to centerfield to score a run, 1-2. Wax Mendoza followed with a line drive double to left field, tying the game at 2-2 versus the reigning champions.
With his batters narrowing the gap, Atendido built on the momentum by recording two groundouts and a strikeout for another perfect inning. NU’s veteran moundman Timban quickly responded by overpowering the Blue Eagles to keep the deadlock intact, 2-2.
The next two innings saw similar action, with Atendido causing problems for the Bulldogs’ offense, while Ateneo also struggled with getting runs on the board. Atendido’s pitching allowed minimal breathing room for NU, forcing ground outs that ended the fifth and sixth innings earlier than NU would have wanted.
However, during the fifth frame, the Blue Eagles failed to contain Kent Altarejos’ single that spiraled into a scored run off the RBI of NU’s Kenneth Maulit, putting the score at 2-3.
During the seventh inning, the Blue Eagles continued their defensive display by not allowing a runner past second base despite Atendido’s pitch count reaching past 80.
In spite of Ateneo’s brilliant defense, their offensive drought continued into the bottom of the seventh, with the Blue Eagles’ bats failing to make contact with the ball.
The top of the eight spelled trouble for Ateneo, as the Blue Eagles failed to catch the Bulldogs’ long singles that resulted in two more runs, extending their deficit to three, 2-5. Ateneo’s offensive struggles also persisted, with batters caught looking on pitches, quickly ending the inning.
With Atendido’s pitch count reaching the hundreds, the Bulldogs quickly capitalized on the Blue Eagles’ fatigue by sending pitches well-into the ballpark, putting two more runs on the board, 2-7. However, the Blue and White stopped the bleeding by catching a fly-out on Atendido’s 122nd pitch of the morning, giving Ateneo a five-run deficit to overcome.
Staring down the 2-7 disadvantage, the Blue Eagles attempted another offensive barrage similar to their third inning display. However, despite putting Emilio Perez and Lorenzo Montemayor on base, Yuan De La Rosa’s strikeout would end any hopes of a comeback win for the Blue Eagles.
The Blue Eagles will seek their first win since round one in their last match of the season against the Adamson Soaring Falcons on April 23, Wednesday, at 7:00 AM in the same venue.
The Lines:
Ateneo (2): 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 – 2 5 4
NU (7): 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 2 2 – 7 13 1
Current Standings (W-L):
- NU Bulldogs (8-1)
- DLSU Green Batters (6-2)
- AdU Soaring Falcons (4-4)
- UP Fighting Maroons (3-5)
- UST Golden Sox (3-5)
- ATENEO Blue Eagles (1-8)
