Tritons split matches to earn 4th seed

University of Guam Baseball Team now has a record of 8-5 after splitting its games last Sunday in the Guam Major League. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

The University of Guam Baseball Team split games on Sunday at Paseo Stadium in the Guam Major League tie-breaking games to earn the No. 4 seed in the wild card playoffs. 

The Tritons defeated the Pirates 12-5 in UOG’s afternoon game that was continued from Friday night’s game that was called after three innings due to poor field conditions. The Tritons then lost 9-7 to the Typhoons in the nightcap. The Pirates are now the No. 5 seed, while the Typhoons are the No. 3 seed.

In the opening game that began on Friday that resumed in the fourth inning Sunday, the Pirates led 3-1 but Tritons scored 4 runs to take it a 5-3 lead and UOG never trailed again. 

The Tritons added four more runs in the fifth inning to lead 9-5 and finished off their scoring with three more runs in the eighth. The Pirates had a two-run home run in the top of the sixth but UOG shut them out the final three innings.

Jaren Gumataotao had started the game pitching for the Tritons on Friday night, but Rico Miner started the game for UOG in the fourth inning on Sunday and only allowed two runs in his six innings of work while striking out eight batters in his best pitching performance of the GML season. Both Gumataotao and Miner were backed up by a Triton defense that did not commit an error in the game. Miner also went 2-3 at the plate with two RBIs and Bam Tequero went 2-4 with two RBIs as well to lead the Tritons’ offense.

The University of Guam Baseball Team in action against the Pirates last Sunday at the Paseo Stadium. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO )

The Tritons with the win then had to play the Typhoons at 7pm on Sunday night and tried to ride Miner’s hot pitching again, as he started the second game, but he gave up five runs to the Typhoons in the first two innings and UOG playing coach Roke Alcantara Jr. came in relief in the third inning and pitched five innings of relief. 

But the Triton defense that had played so well in the first game, committed eight errors in the second game and UOG gave up nine runs in the game. But the Tritons would not go down without a fight, as they cut the Typhoons lead down to 9-7 in the top of the ninth, but with no outs, UOG lined into a double play which took the heart out of the rally, and the Tritons came up short in their comeback.

The Tritons scored a run in the first, two runs in the second, another run in fifth, and then scored three runs late, with a run in the eighth and two runs in the ninth, but it was too little too late and UOG lost, 9-7.

With the split last Sunday, the Tritons record is now 8-5 on the season. The Pirates dropped to 7-5, while the Typhoons improved to 8-4. The Rangers, who UOG plays on Thursday, is the No. 6 seed with a 7-5 record. (PR)