Following two consecutive losses, the DLSU Green Batters rediscovered their championship form earlier today as they defeated the defending champions, the Adamson Soaring Falcons, 10-2, to close out the first round of the tournament at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Diamond.
For La Salle, rookie pitcher Luis Miñana, together with catcher Anton Rosas, shined brightly as they held Adamson to only two runs. Clean defense and powerful hitting also contributed to the stellar performance that gave them their third win of the tournament.
After following the game plan he laid out after the loss to UST, head coach Joseph Orillana only had words of praise for his team. “Sobrang proud ako sa naging performance nila. Mas gising na sila…Yung drive to win, yung leadership at yung intensity sa laro nandoon,” he shared.
(I’m very proud of their performance. They’re awake and the drive to win, the leadership, and the intensity on the field was present.)
The start of the match tilted in favor of the Soaring Falcons as Kyle Villafaña hit a single to shallow left field that allowed Steven Manaig to score a run. With neither team scoring in the second inning, the Green Batters came to life in the third by scoring two runs, courtesy of runs batted in (RBIs) from Kiko Gesmundo and Gabo Pineda.
In the fourth inning, AdU tied the game at 2-all as Mercado laid down a sacrifice bunt to allow the runner to get in scoring position. Lexter Carandang then followed up as he hit an RBI single to allow Villafaña to cross the plate.
In the fifth, however, the Green Batters started to gain momentum as they scored three runs, highlighted by Boo Barandiaran’s two-run home run. They continued to build on their lead as they exploded to score five runs in the sixth inning. With Bill Evangelista on first base, Paolo Salud recorded an RBI single with a scorching line drive to right. Diego Lozano then sent one down the right field line for an RBI double. DLSU went on to score one more run before the Adamson coaching staff made their second pitching change of the match.
With Raymond Neroza on the mound, Pineda hit an infield single before Rosas sent one to center field for an RBI single, ending the inning with La Salle up by eight runs, 10-2.
Right after DLSU’s scoring run, the Soaring Falcons threatened to catch up as they loaded the bases with no outs in the inning. Under immense pressure, Miñana cleaned things up as Neroza grounded into a 5-2-3 double play, followed by a ground out to first by Vince Terrible.
In the seventh inning, Adamson had another chance to get back in the game. However, this was thwarted by a defensive highlight from outfielder Paolo Casas, who made a diving catch to stop what would have been a momentum shifting base hit by Gerald Riparip.
After pitching seven innings, Miñana was relieved by Arvin Herrera. In his two innings on the mound, Herrera recorded two strikeouts and completed a 1-2-3 inning to stop all chances of an Adamson comeback.Heading into the second round of the tournament, Orillana expressed the importance of every game for their chances of a finals appearance. “Walang na ibang paraan kung di umangat ng umangat. Treat every game like a championship game,” he concluded.
