The 10th Pangaea Cup International Slowpitch Softball Tournament, widely known as the jewel of all the Asian Tournaments, was held last weekend in Manila.
3N2 Customized Diamond Gear team retook the crown it lost a year ago with a resounding 35-17 victory over the defending champion US Military Korea Guzzlers.
The tourney featured teams from Japan, Korea, Singapore, Indonesia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Thailand and The Philippines.
The teams were divided into two six-team brackets and played round robin over the first two days. 3N2 and the Korea Guzzlers blew through their respective brackets undefeated and seemed destined to collide in the final.
The Championship Game was a close affair going into the seventh and final inning with 3N2 holding a 20-14 lead. The visiting 3N2 team came out of an inspirational team huddle with determination and erupted for 15 runs in the inning.
The outburst featured five home runs from five different players and the lead was increased to 35-14. The Guzzlers scored three in the bottom to close out.
It marked the fourth time in five years the Taiwan-based team has taken the crown in Manila. 3N2 was paced by Scott Flood, who earned the Silver Slugger Award for his .833 batting clip and seven homers, and Gun Chiang Yi-teh who was voted MVP of the Super Division with 14 home runs in seven games.
Other notables included late arriving George Gaspar who went 8 of 11 and Jamey Storvick, who pitched well in the final and contributed a .760 average.
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