Bulldogs UAAP champs after 45 years

MANILA, Philippines—National University ended 45 years of futility in UAAP baseball with a thrilling 5-4 victory over Ateneo in their winner-take-all championship duel Thursday at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.

Pitcher Aries Oruga came through when it mattered while catcher Alfredo Olivares went 2-of-5 and drove home three runs to complete a 2-1 series win for the Bulldogs, who captured their first and last crown in 1967.

MJ Gante scored the deciding run at the top of the ninth inning after Ateneo center fielder Kirk Long’s error on Mark Anthony Elic’s fly ball, before Oruga, who sparkled in the 5-2 victory in Game 2, finished the job by retiring the last three Ateneo batters.

After Jezreel Rosita caught a fly ball by Ateneo’s Adrian Bernardo for the final out, the NU gallery that included chief backer and SM Prime Holdings president Hans Sy and members of the school’s basketball and volleyball squads erupted in cheers.

The loss left the Blue Batters in tears, having come tantalizingly close to their first title since 1978, when they joined the league.

“This win was all about heart,” said NU coach Isaac Bacarisas in Filipino. “The boys knew how it felt to always be second-best. They didn’t want to have that feeling again.”

NU had lost in the finals the past two years, but it was equal to the task this time, despite losing the series opener, 4-11, last week.

The loss was another stinging setback for Ateneo, this year’s UAAP host, as it came a day after its women’s volleyball team fell to La Salle in their own title series.

Olivares starred in a three-run binge in the third inning with a base hit off lefty Andy Tan that scored Jezreel Rosita and Bryan Lumbres. MJ Gante had earlier broken the ice for NU with a long fly ball to centerfield that drove home Jhondel Tolosa.

Ateneo tied the game at 3 in the sixth inning with Paco Tantuico’s single, scoring Charles Catangui. Matt Laurel, who had earlier singled, also scored on Long’s grounder to third.

But Olivares was up to the challenge in the seventh with a double that sent home Bryan Lumbres.

Oruga was named best pitcher and tournament MVP while Laurel copped Rookie of the Year, best slugger and home run king honors.