| TEAMS | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
| UP (0-7) | 1 | 1 | 3 | X | 5 | 6 | 7 | |||||
| ADU (4-3) | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 4 | X | 15 | 10 | 4 |
After being lambasted by the University of Santo Tomas Golden Sox and coughing up a three-run lead against the De La Salle University Green Archers, the Adamson University Soaring Falcons vented their frustration on the hapless University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, taking a 15-5 abbreviated eighth inning win on Wednesday morning at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.
It was a much-needed win for the Soaring Falcons, as they return to the win column, tying La Salle in the standings with a 4-3 slate. They are also now just a full game behind second-running UST with three games remaining. The also-ran Fighting Maroons fell to a 0-7 record.
Jerome Yenson and Steven Manaig powered the Adamson offense in the game. The two went 2-of-3 at bat resulting to two runs and two RBIs each. Gerald Riparip added three more runs to Adamson’s scoreboard.
The Soaring Falcons immediately jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first three innings of the game, with Erwin Bosito and Gerald Riparip punching in runs drove in by Jerome Yenson (first inning) and a two-out double by Steven Manaig (third inning) respectively.
However, the Fighting Maroons made a counter rally of their own in the middle innings, as James Yang was able to bring home Gabby Yang for their breakthrough run in the fourth inning. A base hit by Mark Tuballas, followed by a fielding error by second baseman Riparip, brought home skipper SJ San Juan to knot things up entering the bottom end of the fifth inning.
Not wanting another let up, the Soaring Falcons went on a fifth inning rampage against Gab Rodriguez, four runs on five hits highlighted by an RBI triple to center field courtesy of Manaig. The rally effectively sucked the momentum out of the Fighting Maroons, as the errors mounted for the bottom team in the league in the next inning resulting in five unearned runs to increase Adamson’s lead to 11-2.
With an imposing lead, Yenson was retired on the mound after the sixth inning. He only allowed four hits against 22 batters.
A total of eight UP runners were stranded by the Adamson defense.
Adamson look to sustain this momentum as they take on the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles, a team they beat in the first round, on Sunday, March 5 at 7:00am. UP, on the other hand, look to end their season strong as they face the UST Golden Sox on the same day at around 11:00am.
