Manila softbelles vent ire on Florida rivals

TEAM Manila overwhelmed US-Southeast Cape Coral, Florida, 20-5, on the final day of group competition Thursday in the 2014 Big League Softball World Series in Sussex County, Delaware.

Salvaging what’s left of what had been a disappointing campaign, the Manila softbelles vented their ire on their Florida counterparts with a show of force that led to the abbreviated win in five innings.

Manila opened the tournament with a 10-9 win over Puerto Rico, before dropping back-to-back games to Milford, Delaware and Laurel, Delaware that ended its hopes of repeating the team’s 2012 championship run.

The Manila girls finished pool play  in third spot with the two Delaware teams taking the two semifinal berths in the group.

“It’s a missed opportunity,” said Manila Little League Philippines president Rafael “Che” Borromeo.  “If we only kept our composure and limited our errors despite the bad calls, we would be in the crossover semifinals.”

The Manila softbelles of coach Ana Santiago left little to chance against the Florida squad, scoring two runs in the first inning before adding five in the next frame. They took a 12-1 lead after the third inning, before finishing off the Florida team with an eight-run burst in the fifth.

Starting pitcher Mary Ann Antolihao also sparkled, holding the USA Southeast champions to just one run until the bottom of the fourth inning.  Cedelf P. Tupas