Razcals, Barakos smother rivals in PONY opener

MANILA, Philippines - Heavy rains failed to slow down the Philippine Razcals and Barakos as they hurdled their respective opening-day rivals in the PONY Mustang and Bronco-11 Asian Championships on a wet Wednesday in Singapore. 

The Razcals beat their taller, heftier Russian counterparts, 12-6, and kicked off their defense of the Mustang (9-10 years old) crown while the Barakos made good impression in their 8-1 rout of host Singapore in Bronco-11 (11 years old) play.

Heavy downpour marked the start of action in the regional qualifiers for the Mustang World Series and Bronco-11 World Series, forcing the postponement of the morning games.

The Razcals were to play a double-header in Day 1 – against Vietnam Wednesday morning.  

The Razcals resume their campaign against Vietnam starting at 9 a.m. today then play Singapore at 12 p.m. while the Barakos face Russia at 11 a.m.

The Razcals faced an early 1-3 deficit after going hitless against Russia’s tall and strong pitcher. Coach Eric Guesmundo then shifted tactics to take full advantage on their bunting and base-running skills, a move that let them catch up in the third frame and turn the game around.

Employing the same effective strategy, the Razcals exploded with seven runs in the fourth and added two more in the next inning to seize a 12-3 lead.

The Russians’ big hitters tried to strike back but could only manage three runs against the steady pitching of Razcals’ Ivan Mendoza, Ethan Mitschiner, Sancho Llamas and Kenneth de los Santos.

The Barakos, meanwhile, shook off early jitters before settling down and unleashing their heavy hitting to blast the hosts.

Singapore drew first blood in the opening frame but the Barakos buckled down to work and peppered the Singaporeans with eight hits. CJ Castillo made two doubles and Yoji Ueda had a one-hit, two-RBIs effort, converting them into eight runs that settled the issue.

The hosts could not get their hitting game going due to the superb pitching by Ueda, who struck out six batters in three innings, while closer Chris Clark fanned out three.

The Singaporeans ignited a late rally in the game but crucial stops made by first baseman Dino Mendoza immediately quashed their bid.

Meanwhile, Singapore’s Mustang team emerged victorious in its double-header assignments, edging Indonesia, 3-1, before demolishing Vietnam, 25-1, while Indonesia’s Bronco-11 clouters showed no mercy in a 21-0 massacre of Russia.