Blu Girls show mettle vs Peru in US meet

MANILA, Philippines — The Blu Girls finally got their act together and barged into the win column  with a 2-1 victory over Peru, ending its lethargic but reassuring stint in the USA Softball International Cup at the South Commons Softball Complex in Columbus,  Georgia, USA.

“I never doubted  that a win  will be coming. That close victory over Peru  showed  that the Blu Girls have been learning from their previous losses and are applying  what  they have learned,” said  Jean Henri Lhuillier, ASAPHIL president and president/CEO of Cebuana Lhuillier, which has been supporting  softball in the country.

“The need  now is  for the girls  to be  more consistent  as we prepare  for the qualifying  tournament for the 2020 Olympics,” Lhuillier also said.

 The Cebuana Lhuillier-backed Blu Girls drew first blood when Angelie Ursabia tripled on a 1-0 count in the first inning to score the game’s first run.

Peru, however, answered with a run in the bottom of the first inning to knot the count at 1-all.

The Philippines had another run in the fourth inning, and pitcher Royevel Palma made sure Peru would not score again, preserving the win for the Blu Girls after consecutive losses in this prestigious women’s softball tournament.

Palma earned the win after pitching for six innings and allowing only four hits, zero runs and striking out five batters.

Ursabia led the Philippines with two hits in three times at bat.