Hitters responsible for return to Regionals

Two days following Saipan’s triumph in the CNMI Little League District Tournament on Rota, it is easy to see that the big advantage the local team had over the weekend was its ability to consistently hit their opponent’s pitches.

Through the four round-robin contests and the championship against Luta, Saipan outscored their opponents by a total of 114 runs for an average of 23.8 to three runs per game. Of all of the local all-stars, Eric Tenorio shone the brightest in 2005’s biggest stage to date.

Tenorio’s highlight of the tournament was a grand slam in the championship game against Rota that blew the match wide open in the third inning.

“It was good because I was jealous of Josh [Jones],” said Tenorio. Jones smacked a grand slam in Saipan’s final game of the round robin on Saturday that sent Jonathon Tydingco, Eli Pangelinan, and Esebei Arurang across the plate.

With all of the success that Saipan’s sluggers experienced in Rota, Tenorio has high hopes for the future of the squad in Japan, and that they have a good shot to make it all the way to South Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

“I felt good throughout the tournament because I played in it last year, and I think that we are going all the way,” he said.

Tenorio drove in more batters than the parents did to Liyug Field, as Saipan’s sultan of swat accounted for sending 21 base runners across home plate. When he wasn’t knocking in his teammates, Tenorio was crossing home himself—16 times in five games. By the time Saipan won the championship, Tenorio smacked nine singles, three doubles, three homeruns, and six stolen bases to finish 15-for-19 with a .789 batting average.

Aside from Tenorio and Jones, the only other player on the squad to hit a homerun was Tydingco, and the mutli-talented hitter added four singles and four doubles to finish just behind Tenorio with a .750 batting average.

Tydingco drove in 11 runs en route to hitting 9-for-12 with 11 runs scored and three stolen bases, while Nokkie Lizama finished 12-for-18 with a .667 average as a result of his two singles, nine doubles, and one triple through five games. The unofficial MVP from the Saipan Little League Baseball Association’s Major Division scored 18 times, and returned the favor by driving in 12 of his teammates for scores.

Another of Saipan’s standouts was John Maratita, who went 9-for-14 at the plate for a .643 batting average with three singles, a double, and three triples. The speedy slugger drove in seven runs, scored six by himself, and stole a base.

Despite outscoring their competition 119-15 through the five games they played over the weekend, and tallying more runs in each contest than their opponent’s total combined output, Saipan’s head coach Elmer Sablan said that there is no time for his players to rest on their laurels.

“We have to move it up a notch because the level we’re going to is a little bit higher. We have a lot of work to do, and we will be returning to the practice field on Thursday,” he said.

While Sablan credited every one of his players as the tournament’s most valuable, the coach gave a nod to Esebei Arurang for coming up with a big-time performance, citing that he was “perfect throughout the tournament.”

Arurang was a solid .500 hitter over the weekend, producing three singles and four doubles in 14 attempts. He made the most of his limited opportunities by driving in eight of his teammates and stealing three bases that led to his eight runs scored.