The DLSU Lady Batters faced a tough 7-0 shutout against the multi-time defending champions AdU Lady Falcons earlier today, March 11, at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.
Fighting hard
With an uphill battle against the Softball dynasty Lady Falcons, the Lady Batters kept the scoreline level in the first inning. Unable to score at the top of the first, La Salle kept Adamson from gaining early momentum, immediately catching the defending champions’ hits at the bottom of the first, 0-all.
At the top of the second, the Green-and-White sent out Glecilyn Alipato, Joerjette Jordan, and Julianne Moral in hopes of finding an opening. However, their hits were immediately caught by the Adamson defense, forcing an early end to the top of the second inning. At the bottom of the second, the Lady Batters were shut down by the Lady Falcons’ offense. With Alaiza Talisik already in third base, Mary Jane Libaton found a gap in the Lasallian defense to allow Talisik to get a run, 1-0.
The Lasallians looked to immediately answer back in the third inning. However, Jazmin Visaya, Jeryll Duller, and Cassandra Inot were unable to find gaps in Adamson’s defense, ending the top of the third still scoreless. At the bottom of the third, MJ Maguad tallied a run for Adamson after capitalizing on DLSU’s errors, 2-0. The Lady Batters finally ended the bottom of the third when the Lasallian defense caught Libaton’s hit, stopping the loaded bases from getting a run.
Tiffany Labargan sparked DLSU’s hopes in the fourth inning as she reached first base after a good hit. However, Ciarina Eder’s hit was read by Adamson, who got the ball ahead of Eder in first base and immediately caught out Labargan, wiping the bases before the Taft-based squad could retaliate. Despite getting early outs in the bottom of the fourth, Adamson notched a run to extend their lead, 3-0. The Lasallians immediately reacted to end the fourth and halt Adamson and their loaded bases.
Losing ground
With April Minanga still dominating on the mound, the Lady Batters were shut down once again in the top of the fifth inning as all three hitters were unable to reach base. On the hitting side, the Lady Falcons soared in the fifth, doubling their advantage to 6-0. The surge started with a double down the line from Mary Jane Pajotal. A sure out hit from a bunt by Libaton was bobbled by the La Salle infielders, allowing the Adamson hitter to reach second. The damage became irreversible after back-to-back RBI doubles from Jhaycel Roldan and Roma Jane Cruz.
At the top of the sixth, relief pitcher Glory Alonzo picked up where Minanga left off, allowing no base runners in the inning. With Adamson maintaining their defensive stronghold, the Lady Batters looked to cool off their run with reliever Duller taking the mound. However, after walking Talisik, the La Salle pitcher gave up an RBI single to Pajotal. Eventually, the game was called at the bottom of the sixth, ending in a 7-0 mercy rule victory for the San Marcelino-based squad.
Despite the loss, Coach Jasper Cabrera acknowledged that his team started off strong, but their lack of experience halted any momentum they were hoping to build, “Maganda [yung] hanggang third inning sana, kaso nakapasok sila sa errors. Tapos yung two runs nila from second inning and third inning sa base on ball lang, four bases. Hindi nagclick yung ano ng pitcher kasi nga kulang pa, hindi pa matured masyado kaya minsan nagpapanic kapag may ganong sitwasyon.”
(It was really good until the third inning, but they were able to break through errors. Their two runs from the second and third inning were from base on ball, four bases. The pitcher did not really click since she is not that matured yet; that is why she panics sometimes in those situations.)
Coach Cabrera believed that the experience gained from today’s game will build up Jordan’s confidence and potential to add the Lady Batters in their upcoming matches, “Kaya ko binabad si Jordan para mabuo ang loob niya. Kaya ginamit ko siya diyan, para makita namin yung agresibo sa bola sa pagpitch maccontrol niya.”
(I let Jordan play a lot so that she can build her confidence. I used her so that we could see her aggressiveness on the ball and how she can control her pitch.)
Following this match, the Lady Batters now stand at 1-3. They will be looking to improve their record as they await the schedule of the second round of the UAAP Season 87 Softball Tournament.
