Dolphins drown Patriots
by Jonas Terrado
Dolphins 8, Patriots 8
The two-time champion Cebu Dolphins dismantled the struggling Forward Taguig Patriots with a late scoring binge for an 8-1 win in Saturday's Baseball Philippines Series 5 at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.
Coming off a convincing 17-7 rout of the Dumaguete Uni-Bikers last Sunday, the Dolphins was holding a one-run advantage until a telling six-run, seventh frame totally decided the game's outcome.
Cebu, winners of Series 2 and 4, bagged its second win in as many games to remain undefeated alongside the Batangas Bulls and the Manila Sharks (both with identical 3-0 marks).
In beating Taguig, Jonash Ponce kept his hot streak by driving home a runner in each of his two hits made in five at-bats.
Ponce gave Cebu a 2-0 lead after hitting an RBI double in the third, then drilled a one-run single four innings later to start the six-run peppering of the Patriots.
The bald-headed Zamboanga native stretched his batting average to .444 (four hits in nine at-bats) with one homer and four RBIs.
But he was the only Dolphin to star in this early morning encounter as ace pitcher Joseph Orillana struck out four batters and allowed Taguig's only run of the game - an RBI single by Rizel Santos that pulled home Jeff Hardillo in the fourth frame - off three hits in a short four-inning outing.
Orillana also had a single in that seventh inning offensive splurge, one of three hits he registered.
Adding the woes for the Patriots is their offense, making just three hits throughout the game as they struggled to make one against Cebu relievers Jeffrey Ardio, Sebastian Uichico and Christian Maghanoy.
Taguig's ace Ernesto Binarao was adjudged as the losing pitcher after giving up two runs off six hits in six innings of work.
But it was Ronaldo delos Reyes who struggled as he allowed all of the seven runs accounted for in the seventh inning.