Bulldogs, Eagles seek baseball final

MANILA, Philippines - Top ranked National U and No. 2 Ateneo try to make full use of their win-once incentives against separate Final Four rivals as they seek a trip to the championship of the UAAP Season 74 baseball tournament today at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.

The Bulldogs, riding the crest of a sweep of the second round that gave them a league-best 8-3 card, look to finish off No. 4 University of Santo Tomas in the first game at 7:30 a.m.

The Blue Eagles, on the other hand, aim to reach the championship stage with a win against rival De La Salle, the No. 3 seed, in the other semis match at 9:30 a.m.

Favored to hurdle the Tigers, whom they swept in the elims, 3-0, and 13-3, the Bulldogs hope to complete a dream season that saw them bounce back strong from consecutive losses to La Salle and Ateneo.

Bulldogs team manager Wopsy Zamora said that absorbing these setbacks had fired up he Bulldogs inc their mission to win the first ever UAAP baseball title this season.

“ We went back to the drawing board and made adjustments on our game, even re-arranging our batting order, and they worked,” Bulldogs Zamora said.

The Eagles and the Archers finished the elims with identical 7-3 win-loss cards but the former emerged the second best team by virtue of their superior quotient. Ateneo won their first encounter, 8-4, but La Salle got back with a 12-9 verdict the next time.

“Well, they (Archers) beat us the last time around so perhaps, they have the momentum,” said AdMU coach Emerson Barandoc.

“The semifinal round is a different game. The stats won’t matter now. We’re both hungry so you can expect a do-or-die battle,” DLSU counterpart Alex Estipular, said for this part.