USA – Team Canada used three squeeze plays to hand Team USA its first loss of the Women’s Baseball World Cup, with a 7-6 decision Wednesday at Botchan Stadium in Matsuyama, Japan. Team USA fell to 3-1 in tournament action and will face Japan on Thursday.

First baseman Keri Lemasters (Beverly, Mass.) and Jane Uh (Riverside, Calif.) led Team USA with two RBIs each. Starting pitcher Anna Kimbrell (Fort Mill, S.C.) struck out one while allowing four runs (two earned) on six hits in 4 1/3 innings but did not figure in the decision. Relievers Megan Meidlinger (Sterling, Va.) and Ashleigh Vargas (Wakefield, Mass.) combined for a pair of runs allowed in 1 2/3 innings, while Lemasters registered the loss after yielding the game-winning run in the seventh.

Canada got on the board in the top of the third as Kate Psota capitalized on a Team USA fielding error with an RBI single that scored Autumn Mills from second base.

Team USA, however, loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the third for Uh, who laced a 1-0 pitch up the middle to drive in third baseman Donna Mills (Lynn, Mass.) and designated hitter Bridget Veenema (Deerfield, Ill.) to give the team a 2-1 lead.

Second baseman Malaika Underwood (Atlanta, Ga.), Team USA’s RBI leader, recorded her ninth RBI of the tournament with a double to left-center in the fourth inning to plate Tara Harbert (Longmont, Colo.), who had singled and stolen second to lead off the inning.

Canada then loaded the bases with no outs for Ashley Stephenson, who hit a two-run single to left to knot the score at 3-3. Canada’s Genevieve Beauchamp popped up a bunt on a suicide squeeze attempt that just eluded a diving Alex Hebert (Webster, N.Y.) and then beat out the throw to first as Psota scored to give Canada a 4-3 edge.

Following a scoreless fifth for Team USA, Canada’s Melanie Harwood led off the sixth with a single. Harwood advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt to third, but, with no one covering, Harwood rounded second and beat Uh to third and then scored on Karine Gagne’s sacrifice bunt to give Canada a two-run lead.

Team USA answered back in the sixth, putting runners on first and second as Hebert was hit by a pitch and Karen Costes (Glastonbury, Conn.) reached first on a one-out fielder’s choice. Underwood singled to left to load the bases, and Lemasters tied the game at 5-5, belting a two-run single to right-center to drive in two. After Lemasters took second on a wild pitch, Canada intentionally walked Mills and Team USA reclaimed the lead at 6-5 on Veenema’s run-scoring grounder.

The see-saw battle continued in the seventh as pinch hitter Stephanie Savoie tied the game for Canada with an RBI single to right. With runners on second and third with two outs, Gagne’s sacrifice bunt scored the eventual game-winning run.

Harbert reached safely in the bottom of the inning on a two-out hit and stole second but was left stranded to end the game.

Courtesy: USABaseball.com

Tags: Canada, USA