Southridge baseball advances to first-ever UAAP Finals, denies NUNS in playoff

For the fourth straight game, PAREF Southridge School secured a victory — this time, earning a ticket to its first-ever UAAP Finals appearance.

The Admirals unleashed a huge four-inning surge late in the game to deny the National University Nazareth School Bullpups in a win-or-go-home playoff for the second UAAP High School Baseball Finals berth, 6–3, on Wednesday at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium in Malate, Manila.

Waiting in the Finals are the De La Salle Zobel Junior Green Batters in a best-of-three championship showdown, starting this Saturday at 8:30 a.m. at the same venue.

The Admirals, a guest school that also competes in boys’ football, boys’ tennis, and boys’ swimming, have achieved their highest finish in any UAAP event.

Southridge’s Pancho Escano, Abram Mendoza, Rob Salandanan, and Diego Hans previously earned bronze in last year’s 4×200 medley relay.

(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team

“Yesterday, I talked to the boys. I asked them, ‘Do you guys believe in divine intervention?’ Sabi nila, ‘Yes.’ The past three games before this game, we’re playing more than ourselves; there’s really some help out there,” said head coach Bocc Bernardo.

Down 1–2 heading into the fifth inning, the league’s lone guest team rallied with five runs over the next four innings against just one from the Bullpups — a turnaround they had not achieved in the elimination-round outings.

Graduating senior Yano Antonio then delivered in the eighth inning, extending a precarious one-run lead to three with a two-RBI single deep into center field, driving in Alessandro Villarosa and JC Basañes.

That proved decisive, as both teams went scoreless in the ninth. The Admirals relied on solid defense, retiring three Bullpups in a row to seal their spot in the Finals.

“Of course, sa kanila nangmumula ‘yung tapang, ‘yung teamwork. Sa kanila nagsisimula ‘yung tiwala sa sarili. I’m just so happy right now. I’m very emotional about how they took it to heart. I think it’s too much to ask the heavens for a fourth straight do-or-die win, but, ayon, the boys really showed up big time today,” added Bernardo.

(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team

NUNS had started strong, asserting early control with two runs off three hits from John Denrick Plaza, Steven Alfante, and Jhian Montallana. However, the Alabang-based Admirals reclaimed the lead after six innings with a two-run response of their own.

Basañes scored in the fifth inning on a play that got Antonio out at third base. Brennan Bitanga then forced a tie in the sixth, crossing home on an error by NUNS third baseman Jericho Catchero, aided by smart baserunning decoy from Emilio Borja.

That set the stage for Antonio’s heroics, as he finished the game with two hits and two RBIs to clinch the win.

On the mound, Joaquin Salvador allowed just one run in the seventh inning, while he and Basañes combined to hold NUNS to only two hits over the last four innings, each recording two strikeouts.

Plaza was the standout for NUNS, finishing with two hits and two RBIs to pace the team’s 10-hit output. Yet six errors and four walks, including two from Justin Lariquez in the endgame, allowed Southridge to capitalize on crucial moments and withstand the Bullpups’ pressure, securing their historic Finals berth.

The Bullpups will take home bronze.