Photo: Prensa Latina

Havana, July 18 (RHC)-- The Industriales Leones sensationally won Monday the seventh game against Sancti Spíritus and qualified to the semifinals of the Cuban baseball tournament.

A superb catch by right fielder Yosvani Peñalver before a connection that would have almost certainly left them on the field sentenced the score to 5-4. 

Guillermo Carmona's Blue Jays decided the game in the bottom of the ninth inning when the best reliever of the championship, Yanielquis Duardo, missed a pitch with two outs and a man on the corners, which the Leones took advantage of to take a definitive lead on the scoreboard.

The duel reached the last chapter with a four-score tie, which was influenced by defensive miscues on both sides.

The victory was won by Juan Xavier Peñalver (2.0 IP, 1H, 3K and 1BB), although the starter Rafael Perdomo, voted Rookie of the Year of the series, and the setter Frank Herrera deserve praise.

Duardo worked more than four innings, which is unusual for him, but he more than fulfilled his responsibility, despite the wild pitching that determined the fate of the game.

With this result, the semifinal pairings are confirmed between Las Tunas-Matanzas, a sort of advanced final, and the classic of classics in the history of Cuban baseball: Industriales-Santiago de Cuba. The semifinal will begin next Thursday.