JUNIOR WORLD MONDAY

 

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USA 8, NETHERLANDS 1 (6)

The USA pitcher, Monica Abbott, threw out the ceremonial first pitch to ISF member CK Wu to start the 2003 Junior Women’s World Championship in Nanjing , China .

 

The Netherlands ’ pitcher Saskia Kosterink became the first batter of the tournament, facing USA fiireballer Meaghan Denny, who struck her out.  Denny walked the second batter, but the next batter sacrificed, and Denny struck out the third batter.

 

Caitlin Lowe started the USA hit parade, slapping a single past the shortstop.  Jackie Rinehart laid down a perfect bunt in front of the plate which was not fielded.  DH Jessica Gilmore drove in the first USA run with a sac fly to right.  At the end of one, the USA led 2-0.

 

Noemi Boekel started the Dutch 2nd with an infield single, but Denny fanned the next two batters and catcher Emily Zaplatosch threw out Boekel stealing 2nd.  The USA went down in order; Jodie Legaspi hit a smash toward the hole, fielded on the jump by shortstop Anouk van den Heuvel.

 

Van den Heuel walked and took second on a passed ball.  Dagmar Bloeming sacrificed her to 3rd on an short bunt expertly fielded by Norelle Dickson.  Kosterink drove her in with a grounder to right, which was misplayed by Desiree Williams but recovered by Kristi Fox who flipped to Williams for the second out, the run scoring.

 

Norelle Dickson reached on a throwing error by the shortstop in the bottom of the 3rd and Lowe hit her second single to the hole.  But, Rinehart ground into a 1-5 fielder’s choice and Gilmore hit into a fielder’s choice which put out Lowe at 3rd.  Zaplatosch ground out to the inning, the USA up 2-1.

 

Monica Abbott relieved Denny in the top of the 4th and promptly  struck out Joyce Roodenberg.  The USA also moved Lisa Dodd from SS to 1st; Legaspi from RF to SS; and Caitlin Benyi to RF.  Abbott struck out the side.

 

Lisa Dodd hit a hard liner, directly to van den Heuvel at SS, her second good play.  Caitlin Benyi put the second pitch out of the park, up the embankment past left field for a 3-1 lead – a shot which traveled an estimated 270 feet.  Legaspi smashed a hard drive off the second baseman’s glove and scored when Kristi Fox’ single to center was misplayed, Fox going to 3rd.  The Dutch put reliever Dagmar Bloeming on the mound, trailing 4-1.  Norelle Dickson drove in the 5th USA run with a sac bunt toward 3rd, the Dutch playing the ball to 1st – with little chance of nailing the speedy Fox at home.  Lowe struck out to end the inning.

 

To start the 5th, the USA put Jaisa Creps behind the plate and Andrea Duran at 3rd. 

 

Abbott started the inning by fanning Britt Bruere, Chantal Versluis, and Van den Heuvel, for her sixth K in a row.  With one out, pinch hitter Holly Krzan singled to left, and was sacrificed to 2nd by Creps, on another good US bunt.  Dodd flied out to right on another well-hit ball.

 

Femke Haage, batting 9th in placea of Bloeming, became Abbott’s 7th K in a row.

Kosterink walked, Gosewehr fanned and Roodenberg fanned, Abbott’s 8th and 9th.

 

Benyi continued to have a hot bat, opening the bottom of the 6th with a hard-hit single to left.  Legaspi’s sac bunt back to the pitcher was overthrown, putting runners at 2nd and 3rd with no out.  Fox drove in the 6th run with a sac bunt – the USA showing great proficiency with their bunting game.  Duran tripled deep to right, driving in the 7th run.  Lowe walked and just kept running to 2nd on a pickle, Duran scoring from 3rd with the 8th run – invoking the ISF mercy rule: 7 run lead after five innings.

 

The USA had eight runs on nine hits, one walk, two Ks.  The Netherlands had one run on one hit, and the USA struck out 13 batters, nine by Abbott.

 

Postscript:  To get the tournament started, a large number of Chinese were in the outfield, with large sponges, trying to dry the field after the nightly rain.  The stadium is impressive, but, the backstop screen is only about 30 feet wide – and foul balls go screaming back into the stands.  RFH  

  CHINESE TAIPEI 9, ARGENTINA 5

ARGENTINA VS CHINESE TAIPEI

 

The Argentine scored a single run in the top of the 1st, Virginia Murina leading off with a triple to right field, and scoring on a single to left by pitcher Lia Melisa Echeveste. Chiang Chao Min was on the mound for Chinese Taipei. 

 

Chinese Taipei tied the score in the 3rd.  Lai Meng Ting tripled to right with two out, and scored on pinch hitter Chin Pei Chun’s triple to right center.  Chun scored on a single by Hsueh Ming Shu off the pitcher to take a 2-1 lead.  Lin Mien Fang struck out to end the inning.  Both triples were well hit, but the impressive foot speed of the Chinese ensured reaching 3rd safely.

 

The Chinese loaded the bases in the 4th on consecutive singles by Chiang Ying Tzu, Fu Wei Ping, and Kao Ching Yi.  But, pinch hitter Lung Szu Yu hit back to the mound, creating the force at home.  Lin Hsiu Min singled off the pitcher’s glove for the 3rd run.  Two more runs scored when a grounder to 2nd was misplayed; the throw home was over the catcher’s head.  The 4th run of the inning scored on Lee Meng Yao’s single.  Romina Chimento relieved for Argentina and got the final two outs of the inning.

 

Argentina loaded the bases in the top of the 6th: with one out, Veronica Bukaczewski and Maria Mallaviabarrena singled; with two out, Agustina Godoy walked.  Pinch hitter Tatiana Tavella singled to left to drive in a run.  Murina singled to right – her third hit of the game -- and her grounder was misplayed into two errors, three runs scoring, for a 6-5 Chinese lead.

 

Tseng Wei Ting opened the Chinese 6th with a single and Lai Meng Ting reached when the 1st base pulled her foot off the bag.  Wei Ting scoed on a passed ball and  Ming Ting scored on a groundout, to push the lead to 8-5.  After Ming Shu singled sharply up the middle, brought in Tavella, their third pitcher in the game.  Mien Fang reached on Argentina ’s fourth error but was out on an attempted pickle.  Ying Tzu’s roller was misplayed at 1st and the ninth run scored.  Almost mercifully, Wei Ping grounded out to 3rd, the Argentines having given up three more runs on two hits and three errors.

 

Lleana Levy opened the 7th singling to left, and stole two bases but the rally failed.

 

Chinese Taipei scored 9 runs on 10 hits.  Argentina scored 5 runs on 9 hits but made 5 errors.  End

CHINA 7, PHILIPPINES 0 (5)

Host China , cheered lustily by a large crowd including many students from the scientific university where the stadium is located, wasted no time in taking the lead against the much smaller Philippines team.  Dominating the 1st, China scored 3 runs, the big hits triples by their very capable shortstop, Wang Ziyun, and Lu Yi, who drove in two of the runs.  Meanwhile, the Filipinos had difficulty solving Qi Jia, who works fast and throws hard. But, adroit fielding prevented two more runs after singles by Sun Guixia and Jiang Jing, both cut down at the plate.

China applied the pressure again in the bottom of the 4th.  Li Li and Dong Mei hit back to back singles.  With one out Jiang Jing singled in a fourth run.  China would score another run in the 4th, then add two in the 5th, for a 7-0 lead – and a run-rule victory. China had 9 hits, while Qi Jia no hit the Philippines .

End

AUSTRALIA 7,   KOREA 0

Jocelyn McCallum struck out six of the first nine Korean batters, while her Aussie mates built a 2-0 lead in the 1st.  The Arizona-bound pitcher (she confirmed to SPY before the game that she will enter UofA in January) used a variety of speeds to vary her rise, drop, change, and curve combinations.

 

With one out in the 1st, SS Rachel Love walked;  with two out, Stacey Dwyer singled to left, the ball ricocheted off the 3rd baseman’s glove into foul territory.  Catcher Heather Southwood beat out an infield hit into the hole and pickled successfully, the second run scoring.  Australia threatened in the 2nd when Lisa Lindsay lofted a high ball deep into left center which CF Lee Bok Hee caught was an impressive run.  Sharon Bell then doubled to center with two out but the rally died.  Australia added to the lead in the 3rd.  Kylie Cronk walked to lead off and was sacrificed to 2nd by Love and, after a single by Nicole Smith, scored the third run on a deep sacrifice fly by Dwyer.

 

Kim Jin-A spoiled McCallum’s bid for a no-hitter with a lead-off single into RF but she was then cut down by Southwood’s rifle throw to Love at 2nd.  Sharon Bell singled for Australia , her second hit, but the Aussies could not score.  But, the outcome was never in doubt.  Frustrated twice when her deep drives were caught, Lindsay crushed a triple – and Australia went on to defeat Korea 7-0.

 

NEW ZEALAND 6, CZECH REPUBLIC 1

 

RUSSIA 1, CANADA 0

 

POSTSCRIPT

The tournament was more than an hour behind when Australia took the field.  The New Zealand game scheduled for 5pm began about 6pm , with the Russian game at 7pm not likely to start until after 8pm .  With the temperature falling almost as fast as a Monica Abbott drop, and no concession stand, SPY having spent 10 hours in the cold and a biting wind, decided to leave, relying on the China web site for the last two games.  Alas, no details were provided.  We checked again at 2am .  Fortunately, we will see all of these teams, plus defending champion Japan and Thailand , on Tuesday.

 

We regret missing the Canadian game, having assumed they would be favored to beat the Russians, an unknown quantity in this tournament.  (The better restaurants are in Nanjing , about an hour away in traffic; after eating, a group of us stayed in the city, having guessed wrong about the Canadian game.  Taxis do not routinely patrol the University, and have to be called.)

 

The United States plays Argentina , whom they defeated handily in Mexico , at 1130.

 

A question asked by several observers who were in Mexico :  Is this USA team stronger?  SPY’s answer: too soon to tell.  Monica Abbott, Norrelle Dickson, Lisa Dodd, Kristie Fox, Jodie Legaspi, Caitlin Lowe, and Emily Zaplatosch – all key players in Mexico   -- are on the Junior World team, and performing well.  The USA has lost pitching stalwarts Alicia Hollowell and Stephanie Van Brakle, and boomers Lauren Lappin and Christina Clark, and speedsters like Kristen Vesely and Linda Secko.  But, the “new faces” have shown talent in other settings – that homer by Caitlin Benyi not only cleared the 220 fence, it sailed at least 270 feet up the embankment.  The USA may not get a “telling” test until Wednesday night, vs Canada , their fourth game.  Then, the question can be answered.

 

 

See a picture of the USA team below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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