Matanzas and Ciego de Avila win first three games in second round

HAVANA, Cuba, Nov 4 (acn) Ciego de Ávila, current champion, and Matanzas, best team of the season, swept Holguin and Camagüey respectively, while Granma won two games and lost one over Villa Clara in the first subseries of the second stage of the 56th National Baseball Championship.

The Ciego de Avila Tigers beat 7-0 Holguin Cubs with Pinar del Rio´s reinforcement Vladimir Baños, who now has balance of 3 wins and 3 losses, as winner, while Dayron Riera (8-4), reinforcement from Guantanamo, took the loss in a match where there were homers by catcher Osvaldo Vazquez and outfielder Luis R. Moiran, reaffirmed as leader in that stat with 12.
In the night game of the day, Matanzas defeated 5-2 Camaguey and with this victory tied its own record of 18 consecutive wins, set in the qualifying phase.
Reliever Yoandry Ruiz earned the win and closer Danny Aguilera took the save, while the loss went to Jose R. Rodriguez. There were offensive highlight for first baseman William Saavedra, who hit his 3rd homer in two days, and Dariel Aviles also homered for the losing side.
In the other evening game, Villa Clara avoided the sweep by winning 1-0 over Granma thanks mainly to Alexander Malleta's RBI-double and excellent pitching performance of Alain Sánchez (6-3), winner, and save to the account of Ronny Valdés, his first of the season, while Yoelkis Cruz (7-3), reinforcement from Las Tunas, earned the loss.