By Jean Malanum
MANILA – Defending champion National University (NU) cruised past Ateneo de Manila University, 7-2, in the UAAP Season 87 baseball tournament at Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium in Malate, Manila on Sunday.
NU improved to 8-1 and moved a step closer to securing the No. 1 seed. It will aim to lock that spot when it faces De La Salle University (6-2) on April 23.
Banking on the brilliant all-round game of pitcher Jherick Timban and reliable second stringers, the Bulldogs secured their second straight win in the second round of the preliminaries.
“We gave our second stringers a chance, just in case we need them in our upcoming games. As coaches, we make it a point to be fair to them and to give them playing time. This is the only way they can gain experience in actual games, so it’s up to them how they take that opportunity,” NU coach Romar Landicho said.
Ateneo, meanwhile, suffered its sixth straight defeat and dropped to a 1-8 record.
In the earlier game, University of the Philippines (UP) kept its semifinal hopes alive after outlasting Adamson University, 13-12.
UP, coming off a loss to NU on Wednesday, joined Adamson in third place at 4-5.
UP and Adamson are one win ahead of University of Santo Tomas (3-5), which is still in the running for the last two semifinal berths.
“This is what I want to see from the UP team, that the game doesn’t end without them really working hard and sacrificing every inning,” UP coach Iking Jimenez said.
“In terms of maturity, they’re there. I hope I can bring out more of their game, that they enjoy it and that there won’t be too many problems. They need to be brave. They know what they’re doing and they advance with every play.” (PNA)
