Definite Lee triumphs in GOP softball tournament

A Definite Lee runner jumps back to first base, while a Guerrero 4 Senate player attempts to tag him out during their game in the 2018 GOP Manhoben Softball Tournament last Saturday at the Capital Hill Ballfield. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)

Definite Lee withstood Aguon-Guerrero’s late rally to eke out a 17-16 victory in the finals of the 20-18 GOP Manhoben Softball Tournament last Sunday at the Capital Hill Ballfield.

Definite Lee, a team backed by Rep. Joseph Lee Pan T. Guerrero (R-Saipan), attempted to pull away, 15-2, after five and a half innings of the winner-take-all finals. However, instead of cruising to victory, Definite Lee got a scare, as the Reps. Francisco Aguon (R-Saipan) and Larry Guerrero-supported squad threatened its favored foe in the last two innings.

Aguon-Guerrero blasted five homers—four straight ones—and tallied eight runs at the bottom of the sixth inning to cut the deficit to five, 10-15. Definite Lee then hit a two-run homer at the top of the last inning for cushion, which proved to be crucial, as Aguon-Guerrero went out for the final push at the bottom.

Six of the seven players in Aguon-Guerrero’s top of the order reached with only one out and a runner on second base. The runner was then left stranded and Aguon-Guerrero fell short in its comeback bid, no thanks to two defensive stops from Definite Lee.

Definite Lee got the second out from a pick-off play at second base, while the third was off a 5-3 putout.

Definite Lee registered a 5-0 record in the 16-team tournament. It posted its first win over TP Juggernauts and then downed TP Brigade to boost its finals chances. For its third game, Definite Lee was paired against Guerrero 4 Senate and prevailed anew, 21-4, to advance to the semis against Real Action. Definite Lee kept going and defeated Real Action, 14-9, to move into the finals after reigning supreme at the top bracket

Aguon-Guerrero, on the other hand, played at the bottom bracket and eliminated Torres Palacios, True Progress, and Rota GOP to earn the right to face Definite Lee in the finale. Definite Lee went on to end Aguon-Guerrero streak after pulling off the close win.

Meanwhile, in the battle for third place, Rota GOP downed Real Action, 14-6.

Rota GOP banked on a good start to win the consolation game, as it scored nine runs in the first two innings, including two homers each in the first and second.

Real Action was silent in the first three innings before making it to the board at the bottom of the fourth after recording four runs. Real Action added two more in the fifth inning to stay in the game, but eventually lost the match, as it gone cold again in the last two. Rota GOP finished off Real Action with a five-run top of the seventh, highlighted by a two-run homer from J.J. Lifoifoi.