Gen Degollacion and Erika Fernandez combined efforts to send the University of Santo Tomas to a winning start in the UAAP Season 88 Softball Tournament, defeating De La Salle University, 2-1, in eight innings on Tuesday at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium in Malate, Manila.
The two seniors completed the comeback for the Tiger Softbelles against the Lady Batters after falling behind 0-1 in a tightly contested, defense-heavy opener organized in partnership with the Philippine Sports Commission.
Fernandez and Helga Campos moved into prime scoring positions following a sacrifice hit from Annarose Macatbag. Degollacion’s hit to the second baseman then set up the winning run.
De La Salle’s second baseman, Daniela Cabangon, fielded Degollacion’s ball. But instead of throwing home to prevent Fernandez from scoring, she threw to first to get Degollacion out — leaving the plate open for Fernandez and the UST victory.
The Tiger Softbelles were limited to five hits against the combined efforts of Joergette Jordan and Lara Silverio, a concern head coach Sandy Barredo hopes to address moving forward.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
“Yung palo talaga, walang palo eh. May mga palo pero tapat-tapat na, kaya ‘yun ang pa-practice-in namin tomorrow,” said long-time UST mentor Barredo.
Barredo also hopes to see more consistent offense in the coming games, especially with defending champions Adamson University set to face UST on Saturday at 9:00 AM.
“Importante is ‘yung palo lang, wala lang palo kasi. Maganda pinapalo ng mga bata sa ensayo, pero nawala lang ‘yung palo sa laro. Hopefully, by Saturday, bumalik ulet ‘yung palo nila,” he shared.
Rookie right fielder Macatbag recorded two of UST’s five hits, while Campos, Magdalene Nangan, and Byza Zafra accounted for the remaining hits that helped the Tiger Softbelles get on base. However, DLSU’s defense kept the scoring in check for the first four innings.
Earlier, Fernandez had crossed home to tie the game at 1-1, scoring off Macatbag’s second hit of the contest — a single to deep center — after advancing to second on Campos’ single in the previous play.
Celine Chang, the third-year hurler from Taiwan, was steady in a complete-game performance for the Tiger Softbelles, allowing just one run on six hits.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
DLSU initially took the lead after a scoreless first three innings, capitalizing on UST errors. Jordan reached first following a fielding error by Campos and later scored from second on another miscue by Zafra.
That would be the Lady Batters’ last score, as Chang and the rest of UST’s defense locked down the game from there.
Cabangon paced the Lady Batters with two hits, while Cassandra Inot, Zeryll Duller, Trisha Licayen, and Tiff Labargan added the other hits. Silverio absorbed the loss after giving up the two runs that sealed UST’s win.
DLSU will face Ateneo de Manila on Saturday at 11:00 AM, hoping to get back into the win column.
| Teams | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DLSU | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 2 |
| UST | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 3 |
