Wang Sheng-wei’s walk-off double with runners on first and second scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the ninth as the Brother Elephants overcame a 1-2 deficit to top the SK Wyverns 3-2 at the Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in Taichung last night to take Game 1 of the two-game set between the champs of Taiwan’s and South Korea’s professional baseball leagues.
The third-year shortstop lined an offering from ace Wyvern closer Song Eun-beom just beyond the reach of an outstretched glove of the Wyvern third baseman down the leftfield line that scored both runners to give the home hosts the dramatic win against their South Korean counterparts.
“It’s an amazing feeling to be able to get the job done when it counted the most,” Wang said in the postgame press conference after being dragged by his teammates for several meters around the base paths in celebration of the spectacular come-from-behind victory.
PRIZE MONEY
The win not only guaranteed the Elephants at least a split in the two-game series, but also NT$5 million (US$165,500) of the NT$10 million in total prize money available, even if they lose Game 2, which is scheduled for tonight at 6:35pm.
Should they pick up another win in tonight’s contest between the two clubs to sweep the series, the total winnings would also reach the hefty NT$8 million mark.
Cho Dong-hwa’s RBI single up the middle following Kim Jae-hyun’s one-out double off Orlando Roman broke a scoreless tie in the top of the second for the Wyverns as they took a quick 1-0 lead.
However, the Elephants would return the favor in the bottom of the same inning as Wang Jin-yong also doubled with one out and scored two batters later on a sacrifice fly by Huang Shih-hao to tie the game at 1-all.
Lee Hojoon ’s third-inning solo blast off Roman put the Wyverns back ahead 2-1, a lead that reliever Jun Byung-doo would preserve for more than five innings in relief of starter John Glover through the eighth, setting the stage for Wang’s last at-bat heroics.
Tonight’s Game
Next up for the victorious Elephants will be Game 2 at the Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in Taichung, in which skipper Chen Rei-chen will send Taiwan Series MVP Jim Magrane to the mound in a search for the sweep. The Wyverns had not named their starter for the game as of late last night.
US national team star Folarin Balogun was among the scorers as AS Monaco on Friday won 3-1 at Paris Saint-Germain, dealing a blow to the side from the French capital before they face Chelsea in a crunch UEFA Champions League round-of-16 tie. Maghnes Akliouche gave Monaco a first-half lead at the Parc des Princes, and Aleksandr Golovin doubled their advantage early in the second half of the French Ligue 1 clash. Bradley Barcola pulled one back for the reigning European champions, but Balogun struck shortly after with a fifth goal in his last five games as Monaco claimed a precious
Teenage star Lamine Yamal’s superbly-taken goal on Saturday earned Barcelona a 1-0 win at Athletic Bilbao in Spanish La Liga. The champions restored their four-point lead over second-placed Real Madrid, who had on Friday temporarily closed the gap by beating Celta Vigo. Atletico Madrid tightened their grip on third with an entertaining 3-2 win over Real Sociedad. Yamal, 18, curled into the top corner after 68 minutes to split the sides at Athletic’s San Mames stadium. “We’re already seeing what Lamine can do — he puts it right in the top corner, and there’s nothing the keeper can do,” Barca
Liverpool on Tuesday suffered an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers as Andre’s stoppage-time strike sealed a dramatic victory for the English Premier League’s bottom club. Arne Slot’s side fell behind to Rodrigo Gomes’ strike in the closing stages at Molineux. Mohamed Salah hauled Liverpool level with his first goal in 11 top-flight games dating back to November last year. However, Andre’s first goal for Wolves inflicted the latest humbling loss in a chastening season for Liverpool. It was the first time the Premier League’s bottom club had beaten the reigning champions since Crystal Palace defeated Chelsea in 2017. Liverpool
CHANCE TO QUALIFY: Both teams now have three points from two games, and Taiwan sit ahead of Vietnam and behind Japan, who last night beat India 11-0 Taiwan yesterday defeated Vietnam 1-0 to move into second place in Group C at the AFC Women’s Asian Cup with one match remaining. Su Yu-hsuan scored the decisive goal in the 26th minute after Taiwan midfielder Saki Matsunaga’s shot hit the crossbar, leaving Su to nod the rebound into an empty net for the team which won the last of their three Asian Cup titles in 1981. It was a deserved victory for Taiwan, 2-0 losers to Japan on Wednesday, who created several chances to extend their lead. Vietnam, the 2022 quarter-finalist, beat India in their opener, but struggled to
RSS