ATENEO NEEDED just seven innings to dispatch the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons, forcing a mercy rule, 15-2, in their opening match of the inaugural Philippine Baseball League (PBL) on Sunday, January 6 at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium, Manila.

For Ateneo—along with UP, the De La Salle Green Batters, the University of Santo Tomas Golden Sox, the Adamson Soaring Falcons, and the National University Bulldogs—the month-long tourney serves as a prelude to the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) baseball tournament, slated to begin in February. Ateneo’s opening win placed them in second place of the PBL standings with a 1-0 win-loss record. The Fighting Maroons, on the other hand, remained winless with their second defeat in as many days.

After a quiet first inning that saw both teams scoreless, the Blue Eagles drew first blood at the bottom of the second after a pair of sacrifices from Miguel Habana and Yoji Ueda led to the first run of the match. The Blue Eagles nearly squandered multiple runs at the top of the third, but excellent pitching by Nacho Lozano and a clever play at the end that caught UP off guard helped them remain unscathed.

Ateneo extended their lead at the bottom of third, courtesy of a Gino Tantuico ground ball that brought the scoreline to 3-0. The Fighting Maroons slowly tried to mount a comeback at the top of the fourth with consecutive singles, but the subsequent double play off the catch by Ueda ended the half-inning with UP still scoreless. With the bases loaded at the bottom of the fourth, a powerful hit by Radito Banzon delivered Ateneo’s fourth run of the match, though Jared Filart was caught between second and third.

After a flyball by Javi Macasaet that dropped between a pair of UP outfielders for a single, Ateneo ballooned their lead to six runs through consecutive errors by their opponents. Returning Blue Eagle Ryon Tionloc then sent home Gio Salvatierra with a single of his own, placing Ateneo firmly in control with a 7-0 advantage.

The floodgates then opened at the sixth inning that primed the Blue Eagles for the mercy-rule finish. A sublime showing by relief pitcher Luis Benedicto quickly retired the UP side at the top of the sixth, which was followed by a Tantuico single that brought home a run, extending the Fighting Maroon deficit to eight.

The Blue Eagles promptly tallied six consecutive runs thereafter. The barrage brought Ateneo’s already-substantial lead to 14-0. Macasaet punched in a triple towards the conclusion of the sixth to score yet another run, but Marco Mallari was caught out of the plate to put an end to the offensive onslaught by the boys in blue.

Heading into the top of the seventh, the Blue Eagles needed to hold on to at least a  10-point lead at the end of the half inning for the enforcement of the mercy rule. A tiny glimmer of hope emerged for the Fighting Maroons at the top of the seventh with their first two runs of the match, but Ateneo held on with a routine play to claim the final out and consequently, the victory.

“Our pitching did a good job today, particularly Nacho, our starting pitcher,” Ateneo Head Coach Bocc Bernardo said after the match. “He did a good job, allowing no runs in five innings. Our pitching helped us, kahit medyo late yung hitting namin in this game.”

The Blue Eagles look to continue their good run of form in their next match against the IPPC Nationals on Saturday, January 12, 10:00 AM, at the same venue.