Story and Photos by REDintern Matthew Lau
Jeron Tan (Montfort #01) is dejected after his team lost to Catholic High in a crucial game. The loss cost Montfort a place in the semi-finals. (Photo 1 © REDintern Matthew Lau)
Montfort Secondary School, Monday, 24 February 2014 – Catholic High School (CHS) beat Montfort Secondary School (MSS) 3–2 to qualify for the semi-finals of the National B Division Softball Championship.
With both Montfort and Catholic High having identical 1–1 win-loss records in the second round, this was a winner-take-all game with a semi-final place at stake.
Montfort took the lead early in the game, scoring two runs in the first inning. Lead off batter Jester Seah (MSS #4) got a two-base hit off Catholic High’s pitcher Daryl Chan (CHS #12). Shortly after, he stole third base.
Capitalising on having a runner in scoring position, Leow Feng Ying (MSS #7) placed a sacrificial bunt down, scoring Jester Seah (MSS #4). With one down, Jeron Tan (MSS #1) hit a double.
After retiring Jonathan Lee (MSS #5), Jeron (MSS #1) stole third. Jeron Tan (MSS #1) came home on a line drive hit by Nur Iman (MSS #2). The inning was over when Jeremy Tan (MSS #8) was thrown out at first.
Catholic High saw no success in their offence in the first inning with only Elliot Tan (CHS #21) successfully getting on base.
The second inning went by with neither teams being able to score any runs.
The top of the third inning started with Leow Feng Ying (Montfort #7) hitting a single off Daryl Chan (CHS #12). Feng Ying then stole second and third base within the next few pitches. The top of the inning ended with Feng Ying stranded on third base after a series of failed attempts to bring him home.
The bottom of the third started off badly for Catholic High when Elias Lee (CHS #7) and Javier Ng (CHS #22) got struck out by Jeron Tan (MSS #1). Things started to pick up when Benjamin Loke (CHS #10) managed to get on base with two outs. His single sparked a comeback for Catholic High, as it was followed by both Chan Wei Zheng (CHS #2) and Elliot Tan (CHS #21) both hitting singles.
With the bases loaded, Benjamin Loke (CHS #10) scored home on a wild pitch by Jeron Tan (MSS #1). The inning ended with Catholic High unable to score anymore runs when Schuyler Tay (CHS #52) got struck out.
In the fourth inning, Montfort shut down Catholic High’s offence, not allowing any batters to get on base.
Montfort’s offence was short lived in the top of the fifth inning with only Jester Seah (MSS #4) getting on base after Catholic High made an error.
Catholic High started the bottom of the fifth inning with Darren Heng (CHS #5) hitting a single. He was then substituted by pinch runner Elias Lee (CHS #7). Montfort were able to throw the second batter Javier Ng (CHS #22) out at first to get the first out of the inning.
After Elias Lee (CHS #7) stole third base, Benjamin Loke (CHS #10) was called out on a pop fly to the right fielder. With two outs, Montfort only had one more out to go to secure a spot in the semi-finals.
However, Chan Wei Zheng (CHS #2) had a successful safety bunt to get on first base and allow Elias Lee (CHS #7) to score the tying run. Chan Wei Zheng was then substituted out for a pinch runner, Marcus Aw (CHS #0).
Elliot Tan (CHS #21) was up next and he hit a single, advancing the winning run to second base. Catholic High then performed a double steal, advancing both their runners into scoring position. With two downs, two strikes on the batter and the wining run on third, catcher Jonathan Lee (MSS #5) missed the ball, allowing Marcus Aw (CHS #3) to score to win the game for Catholic High.
Catholic High will go on to the semi-finals to face either Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) or Hwa Chong Institution.
Scorers
Catholic High
Benjamin Loke – 1
Elias Lee – 1
Marcus Aw – 1
Montfort
Jester Seah – 1
Jeron Tan – 1
Score By Inning
Catholic High vs Montfort
1st Inning: 0-2
2nd Inning: 0-2
3rd Inning: 1-2
4th Inning: 1-2
5th Inning: 3-2
Catholic High Roster
Benjamin Loke (#10), Chan Wei Zheng (#2), Elliot Tan (#21), Schuyler Tay (#52), Anthony Neo (#20), Alexander Wee (#35), Chow Rui Yan (#99), Elias Lee (#07), Javier Ng (#22), Daryl Chan (#12), Gabriel Tan (#28), Marcus Aw (#03), Low Siang Ern (#16), Ethan Kai (#1), Zhang Cheng Chuan (#8), Sean Soo (#23), Darren Heng (#5)
Montfort Roster
Jester Seah (#4), Leow Feng Ying (#7), Jeron Tan (#1), Jonathan Lee (#5), Nur Iman (#2), Jeremy Tan (#8), Nicholas Ng (#15), Aaron Salim (#6), Muhd Hairi (#11), Qyle Angeles (#25), Xavier Neo (#20), Tan Jing Jie (#18), Timothy Sequerah (#13), Wong Wei Chern (#24), Ajay Sekar (#3)
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