Dukso High School remains undefeated in national tournament finals for 13 consecutive years! They broke a 17-year drought... defeating Yushin High School 7-4 to win the Presidential Cup.

*This content was translated by AI.

Under the leadership of head coach Jung Yun-jin, Dukso High School continued its record of remaining undefeated in national tournament finals for 13 consecutive years. Waiting at the end was the Presidential Cup championship trophy, not seen since 17 years ago.

On the 30th, Dukso High School defeated Yushin High School 7-4 after a tiebreaker in extra innings (the 10th inning) to claim the championship in the final of the 60th Presidential Cup National High School Baseball Tournament held at Pohang Baseball Stadium in Gyeongbuk.

This is Dukso High School's first Presidential Cup victory in 17 years, following back-to-back wins in 2008 and 2009. Although it was the tournament that brought head coach Jung Yun-jin his first national championship title after taking over as Dukso High's manager in 2007, they had no particular connection to the trophy since their 2009 victory. In the Lee Hu (President) Cup, their best result was reaching the semifinals in 2015.

However, once they reached the final, they showed the form of a top contender. Dukso High School extended its record of remaining undefeated in national tournament finals from the 2016 Golden Sajakji to 13 consecutive years. This marks Dukso High's 28th trophy and head coach Jung Yun-jin's 21st national championship trophy.

The turning point came in the top of the 10th inning when both teams were tied 4-4. With two runners placed on first and second base for the tiebreaker, Shim Geon-woo hit a sacrifice fly that dropped into center-left field for an RBI single after failing twice with bunts. Following this, Lee Yun-jae attempted a bunt, but the catcher made a throwing error to first base, allowing both the batter and runner to reach safely, adding another run for Dukso High. Jo Won-bin then added an RBI single that dropped shallowly along the left-field line, putting Dukso High ahead 7-4.

After appearing on the mound in the bottom of the 9th inning, Eom Jun-sang secured the victory by retiring three batters in the bottom of the 10th with a shortstop grounder, a strikeout, and a center field fly ball.

Dukso High School's third pitcher, Jung Ju-young, laid the foundation for a comeback victory with 5⅔ innings pitched, allowing 3 hits and 4 walks while recording 3 strikeouts and giving up 2 earned runs. Eom Jun-sang, who started at shortstop and batted third, recorded 2 hits in 4 at-bats with 1 walk, then contributed on the mound by pitching 2 scoreless innings with no walks and 1 strikeout allowed, leading the team with both his hitting and pitching performance.

Eom Jun-sang also excelled overall in the tournament as a pitcher, going 2-0 without a loss over 2 games with 4⅔ innings pitched, allowing only 1 earned run. As a shortstop, he batted .375 (9 hits in 24 at-bats) across 6 games with 4 RBIs and 7 runs scored.

The star of the day was catcher and fourth batter Seol Jae-min. Having recovered from a long-term shoulder injury, Seol Jae-min went 3-for-5 with 1 RBI and 1 run scored, proving on both offense and defense why he is considered the top prospect among catchers.

Furthermore, Seol Jae-min maintained consistent performance throughout the tournament, batting .481 (13 hits in 27 at-bats) over 6 games with 2 home runs, 12 RBIs, 7 runs scored, and 2 walks, earning him the tournament MVP award.

Meanwhile, Yushin High School, reaching their first Presidential Cup final since the club's founding, had to settle for runner-up status due to a lack of focus in the late innings. Their best result prior to this was reaching the semifinals in the Yoo Sin-go-ui (President) Cup.

Park Chan-hee, who had served as the ace throughout the tournament, failed to meet expectations after receiving little defensive support, pitching 5 innings with 8 hits allowed, 4 walks, 3 strikeouts, and 4 earned runs (0 unearned). The highly anticipated returnee Lee Seung-won also collapsed in the tiebreaker situation of the 10th inning, allowing 3 hits and 1 earned run (0 unearned), stopping just short of the championship.

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*This content was translated by AI.