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CNMI goes for gold in baseball
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- CNMI catcher Manny Sablan secures the ball and checks the runner before making any move during an earlier game against Pohnpei in the 8th Micronesian Games last week at the Daini Field. The CNMI is in the finals, following a 2-1 win over Guam yesterday. (The Kaselehlie Press)
The Commonwealth sluggers will gun for the gold medal today when they face Guam anew in the 10am title match. Guam earned a second crack at the CNMI and the last finals berth after downing Palau, 5-2, in the afternoon match yesterday.
Joshua Jones and Brian Camacho pitched for the CNMI with the former starting out for the squad and shutting down Guam in the first three innings. Jones pitched four innings and struck out five before giving up the mound for Camacho, who also prevented Guam from scoring in the last three innings, while striking out three.
The CNMI-Guam duel for the first finals seat finally took place yesterday morning after back-to-back (Saturday and Sunday) cancellations due to heavy rains. Both teams showed some rust because of the two-day break before the CNMI gain some cushion midway at the top of the first inning. The Tony Rogolifoi-managed squad got two hits and one run at the top of the first and silenced Guam at the bottom for the precarious 1-0 lead.
Information provided at the event’s website did not indicate who scored for the CNMI or who made the two hits, but Saipan Tribune learned Tyrone Omar had three hits for the Commonwealth, while catcher Manny Sablan recorded an RBI. The CNMI made two more hits at the top of the second, but failed to score, holding the shaky one-run advantage.
The CNMI lead was stretched to two at the top of the third, but Guam remained in contention, as the latter finally broke the ice at the bottom of the fourth. Guam lit up the board with Jones manning the mound, but that was it for CNMI’s rival, as Camacho closed out for the Commonwealth and had a strong finish to move his team to one win away from securing the gold medal in the quadrennial event.
The CNMI-Guam tiff is a rematch of the 2006 Micronesian Games Saipan hosted and the Commonwealth bets are aiming for a repeat of their 3-2 triumph over Guam. A win against Guam today will bring back the baseball gold the CNMI lost to host Palau in the 2010 Micro Games. Going in today’s finale, the CNMI and Guam are even, as the latter earlier notched a 3-2 victory versus the former in the elimination round to top the field with a perfect 4-0 record. The CNMI swept its first three games in the elimination before losing to Guam last Friday.
Stuck to 32 medals
The CNMI still has 32 medals (14 golds, 14 silvers, and 4 bronzes) as of 6pm yesterday after the Commonwealth’s paddlers faltered on their bid in the long distance canoe race at the Lidakihka Beach.
The CNMI Paddling Team bowed out of the competition in the 15K event, while Pohnpei took the gold in both the men’s and women’s divisions. Palau and Yap got the silver and bronze in the men’s event, while Guam and Palau grabbed the silver and bronze in the women’s category.
With no medals to show in Day 8 of the Micro Games, the CNMI remained in sixth place in the medal board. Guam still leads the Games with its 37-26-10 tally, followed by Pohnpei (34-41-32), Marshall Islands (33-20-31), Palau (31-24-31), and Yap (17-21-15). Kosrae (4-3-10), Nauru (3-9-4), Chuuk (3-4-8), and Kiribati (0-0-0) complete the field.
Meanwhile, the CNMI lost both games in basketball yesterday. The Commonwealth bowed to Chuuk in the battle for fifth place in the men’s division, while the CNMI cagebelles fell to Guam in the women’s division semifinals. The CNMI women’s team will play the winner of the Marshall Islands-Pohnpei match for the bronze medal today.
