Cuba remains undefeated and prepares for Little League Baseball semifinals

Punta Cana, July 9 (JIT) -  A win by a score of 8 to one over Curacao B marked the closing of Cuba in the qualifying stage of the Caribbean Little League Baseball tournament, an event in which Cuba prepares for in semifinals this Saturday.

The Creoles of Santa Clara got their fourth success in a row hanging on the arm of Cristian Guerra, who threw all six innings of the game and struck out a dozen batters.

Likewise, third baseman Elvis Herrera hit four hits in the same number of innings and was a pillar of the offense.

Cuba sentenced the game in the very first inning with a five-run scoring spree that gave them the opportunity to rotate all the players on the bench in defensive positions.

From that point on, the team did not give too many liberties to its rivals and, in short, successfully completed a game of pure formality for them.

Offensively, fourth baseman William Álvarez, with a hit, a run and three RBIs, as well as Andy Sarduy, who had two hits in four innings, also stood out.

"I told the coaches to trust me, that this game was mine, and so it was. I was pitch by pitch, using the curve and that's how I was able to dominate. In the semifinal tomorrow (Saturday) I am going to the catcher to do my job well to help the team", assured pitcher Cristian Guerra.

Elvis Herrera said he was satisfied with the awakening of his batting and predicted a close match in the semifinals against Aruba: "We are two strong teams and it is not by chance that we got this far".

Cuban technical director, José Ganuza, confirmed Cuba's objective of going game by game, respecting all opponents. He also praised above all the work of the pitchers, an element that in his opinion decides in this type of tournament. For Saturday's semifinals, he has already announced William Álvarez to step into the box.

Facing that crucial game, Cuba will arrive with the advantage of having all its pitching ready, a detail in which the effectiveness of the rotation and the planning according to the number of pitches has a lot to do.

Friday's result for Cuba qualifies as the 50th victory for this team in its last 51 games, including preparation matches with other teams. In fact, the only loss was to Santa Clara's U-15 team.

Assured as group leaders since Thursday, Cuba now awaits Aruba to play one of the semifinals of the tournament. In the other match, Curacao A awaits the decision of the match between Dominican Republic A and Curacao B to know its opponent.