DCCA caps perfect season with title

Department of Community and Cultural Affairs completed its undefeated season in the men’s division of the Inter-government Softball League using an avalanche of runs to glide past Aguaguat in Tuesday finals.

Home runs kept flying out of the Miguel Basa “Tan Ge” Pangelinan Field as DCCA was all business drowning Aguaguat with a tsunami of hits to cruise to a 43-11 win.

It was 43-3 at one point and if not for a brief run made by Aguaguat, which faced the tough task of beating DCCA twice to claim the title, in the bottom of the seventh.

DCCA smacked a total of 16 homers with two grand slams against the Aguaguat bullpen, which gave up all earned runs on 39 hits with nine walks.

Umpire Nick Castro nearly ran out of balls as the DCCA batters kept pounding every Aguaguat pitch either at the left center field fence or over at the right field fence near the Sun Palace Hotel.

Statistician Roque Celis, however, had to thank a number of people who volunteered to retrieve the home run balls in order to continue with the game.

After DCCA took a 37-3 lead after five complete innings, fans of the defending champions waited patiently as the only thing left to be settled is the final score.

Pete Tomokane, who was named finals most valuable player, led the DCCA hit parade going 5-for-6 with five runs scored to go with his eight RBIs and three home runs including a third inning grandslam.

Winning pitcher and regular season MVP Mel Sakisat went perfect a the plate going 5-for-5 with six runs, five RBIs, a double, a triple, two home runs and a fourth inning grandslam.

Joey Dela Cruz also went perfect at the plate going 6-for-6 scoring six times with three RBIs, a double, and a three-run homer in the first inning.

Jun Saralu and Myron Sablan combined for 8-for-10 in batting with nine runs, eight RBIs, two doubles, and three four-baggers. Saralu went over the fence twice, while Sablan had a two-run shot in the third.

Ben Tagabuel went 4-for-6 touching home plate three times, had four RBIs, two doubles, a triple, and a solo shot in the sixth. Julian Camacho went 4-for-4 with four runs and two RBIs.

The DCCA lineup consists of al-star players not only from the softball ranks, but from baseball as well.

The win completed DCCA’s 22-0 season and a sweep of the men’s and women’s crowns after their ladies team won the division title last Friday, sweeping Northern Marianas College-Proa in the three-game series.