A first for RP Little League

Head of delegation Catherine Tanco-Ong said the Philippines advancing to the finals of all three divisions of the 2008 Asia-Pacific Regional Little League Tournament is a historic moment for the country’s Little League program.

“This is the first time ever that this has happened. For Philippine baseball this is huge. It’s the first time. We hardly ever win and now we send three teams and all are playing in the championship game,” she said just as the CNMI ousted Guam in the Senior League yesterday at the Oleai Sports Complex.

Tanco-Ong, who served as manager of the 2007 Philippine Junior All-Stars that advanced to World Series title game before losing to Pearly City, Hawaii, said while the Philippines is happy to reach all three finals of the regional tournament, in no way are they satisfied.

“It’s very critical that we win the championship games but it’s also nice that all three teams are in the finals. That in itself is a first.

“These last three games in the championship are important. We now have to focus on winning for all three teams. The Juniors play first, the Seniors play next, and then the Big League play after that. We need to focus on winning those final games so that we can bring honor to our country,” she said.

Tanco-Ong also took the opportunity to thank the Filipino community on Saipan who have come down in droves to the Francisco M. Palacios Baseball Field to cheer for their kababayans.

“It’s so nice. They’re really so loud and supportive and that’s why when we face the CNMI tomorrow with all the Filipinos here, it would seem like we are the home team. It’s like we have a built-in home field advantage every single time we play here,” she said.

Tanco-Ong added that only on Saipan does the Philippines have an advantage in crowd support.

“Normally when you go to Guam or other areas, the home team is always at an advantage. But that’s not the case here. So my thanks to all the Filipinos here on Saipan for coming to the games and supporting our three teams.”

All three Philippine teams will face host CNMI in the finals scheduled all day today at the Oleai Sports Complex.

The Philippine Junior All-Stars advanced to the championship after finishing the eliminations with an unblemished 4-0 mark. They beat CNMI, 15-5, in a no-bearing contest in the second game yesterday.

The Seniors, meanwhile, got a free ride to the title game when the CNMI walloped Guam, 13-3, yesterday. All three teams actually finished with identical 1-1 win-loss records, but the Philippines and the CNMI advanced to the finals because they allowed the least runs.

In the Big League, the Philippines finished with a 1-1 mark behind 2-0 CNMI. Guam was winless in two games in the division.

Hong Kong (1-3) and Indonesia (0-3) also took part in the Junior League of the 2008 Asia-Pacific Regional Little League Tournament.