By Patrick Lujan
It took a while, but the GW Geckos baseball season finally got underway Saturday morning.
As some teams have already played three games, GW’s first game earlier this week was rescheduled, making Saturday their opener against top contender Southern Dolphins coming in at 2-0.
The Geckos proved that they, too, will be up in the rankings with a big 10-7 win over the Tuninos sparked by senior Jace Gumataotao’s two-run homer to straight away centerfield in the 3rd inning.
“We got to get over the first-game jitters,” said GW’s rookie manager Lawrence Aflague before the game.
GW certainly did with two runs right from the start off Southern ace Marko Parks in the first.
Gumataotao’s two-run blast in the third gave the Geckos a little more comfort room and they never looked back as they blew open to a 10-1 lead.
Senior starter Raythan Sablan had a steady showing on the mound before being pulled in the sixth inning. That’s when Southern mounted a six-run rally. Keone Raguindin came in relief in the 7th to shut the door.
“We knew it was going to be a battle coming in. Southern is a tough team and we knew they wouldn’t quit,” Aflague said. “We just had to try and maintain our play and focus. At one point we started to lose our composure, but it was our first game, so that is something we will work on.”
Gumataotao went 3-for-4, adding in a single and double with his homer. Eden Sablan also went 3-for-4 with a ground-ruled double in the first inning.
Other Game
In the other Saturday morning game, the Sanchez Sharks picked up their first win of the season 19-6 over the winless Okkodo Bulldogs.
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