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Comets nip Falcons: Braves rout Bank of Saipan
A Braves batter removes dirt from his shoes before stepping to the plate during their first round game against the Comets in the Junior League division of the 2017 Saipan Little League Baseball at the Francisco “Tan Ko” Palacios Ballfield. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)
The Comets and Braves posted contrasting victories to remain in the Top 3 in the team standings in the Junior League division of the 2017 Saipan Little League Baseball.
The Comets outlasted the Falcons, 7-6, in the first game last Saturday at the Francisco “Tan Ko” Palacios Ballfield, while the Braves blanked Bank of Saipan in the second match, 18-0.
The Falcons-Comets tiff went to three extra innings with the latter getting the go-ahead run at the top of the 10th inning as J.P. Castro’s single drove in leadoff batter Terrance Changar. The Comets kept the precarious lead when pitcher Sab Saures fanned out the Falcons first batter Jericho James and the third and fourth, leaving Crucifio Pangelinan stranded at second.
The Comets took the close victory as they shut down the Falcons from the sixth to 10th inning. Before going cold, the Falcon clung to a 6-5 advantage after four complete innings, while the Comets equalized at the top of the fifth with Zep Limes reaching home off a passed ball.
With the win, the Comets improved their record to 5-2, tying the Falcons for first place (pending results of last Sunday’s games) and boosting their chances for the pennant.
Also in the race for the pennant are the Braves, who now have a 5-3 card following their demolition of Bank of Saipan.
Tony Dizon threw a two-hitter in five innings to clobber Bank of Saipan (2-5). He also recorded nine strikeouts in the easy victory.
The Braves were never threatened in the shortened game, finding their form in the second inning after being held to one run in the first. The Braves added six runs in the third—two of them were courtesy of J.P. Celis’ single—and after being silent in the fourth inning the Braves recovered with a seven-run top of the fifth.
At the bottom of the fifth, Bank of Saipan had a good chance to end its drought as it loaded the bases. However, Dizon struck out the next three batters to deny Bank of Saipan a single run.
