UST nine squeaks past La Salle in UAAP baseball

University of Santo Tomas’ bid to win the UAAP baseball title may not exactly be easy sailing. The Tigers learned that Sunday as they needed to overcome a six-run deficit before pulling off a come-from behind 8-7 win over La Salle at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium. The win enabled the Tigers to sweep their first-round assignments with a 5-0 record. One more sweep in the second round will automatically make them this year’s baseball champion. UST last won the title in 2006 when the team still had ace hurler Jon Jon Robles. “We’re not the favorite because we finished fifth last year, but I know we are a contender because any player in this team can contribute," said Tigers coach Jeffrey Santiago. But the Tigers were given a dose of reality — that this year’s crown won’t be given them on a silver platter. The Archers were poised to play the spoiler’s role, racing to a 6-0 lead in the first two innings. They were still leading, 6-3, going into the final inning, when the Tigers’ batters came alive. La Salle’s relief pitcher Paolo Mallari allowed three hits in the ninth that resulted in three runs as the Tigers knotted the count, 6-all. Julian Teves came through with a two-run single while UST relief pitcher Gerald Mitra blanked their rivals to send the game to an extra inning. Michael Zapanta completed the go-ahead run with a hit to deep left while also scoring on a standing double. La Salle trimmed the lead to a run as Edward Flores scored from second base on a double by Nico Uichico. Needing just a strikeout to seal the match, Santiago brought back ace hurler Glen Tuazon, who responded by striking out Jun Angeles, giving La Salle its fourth loss in five games. Ateneo relied on back-to-back home runs by Kevin Ramos in the eight and ninth innings to fashion out a 13-10 victory over University of the Philippines in the other game. Ramos drove in five runs in the process as the Eagles broke a 7-7 standoff after seven innings for their second win in five games. The Maroons dropped into a share of fifth to sixth places with La Salle. - KY, RCJ, GMANews.TV