Manila softbelles off to a hot start

HEMET, California – Team Manila-Philippines needed only three innings to dominate South Hemet XEL, 12-0, in the 2018 PONY World Series 18-Under Girls Softball Championships at the Diamond Valley Park in the Valley-Wide Recreation District here.

Standout pitcher Glory Alonzo delivered an impressive performance with a total of five strike outs and two no-run innings, including a couple of skillful defensive stops to lead the Manila Batters to their first win in this World Series.

But it was at the top of the first when a barrage of runs put the defending champions at 6-0 after an RBI by first baseman Cleofe Magsayo paved the way for two runs from short stop Angelu Gabriel and second baseman Mary Joy Maguad, which sparked the Big City softbelles’ scoring spree.

Four more runs by Magsayo, Alonso and centerfielder Khrisha Cantor gave Team Manila a commanding 12-0 lead.

In the second double-header battle against Redlands South California, top pitcher Tauli yielded a homerun to third baseman Maxine Ortega of Redlands that put the Manila softbelles behind, 0-1, in the early stretch of the first inning.

Tauli delivered six straight strike outs that left the Redlands in awe, including an RBI by first baseman Cleofe Magsayo off a catching error for three runs from shortstop Angelu Gabriel, first baseman Karen Nicole Chavez and pitcher Alexandria Romero-Salas, 3-1 midway into the second inning.

Catcher Aliza Pichon blasted a homerun at the bottom of the first inning to give Manila the lead, 7-1, until the bottom of the third when shortstop Angelu Gabriel blasted another one-run homerun for a 9-1 count.

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