Baseball Canada’s national women’s team’s hopes for a gold medal at the Women’s World Cup in Taipei, Taiwan were dashed with a 9-4 loss to Australia today. After beating the defending gold and silver medalists from the United Sates and Japan to help the Canadians start the tournament with three straight victories, Canada has now suffered two consecutive defeats, placing the team in a dog fight for a medal. “We managed 10 hits, but never at the right moments,” said Canadian head coach André Lachance. “It was a really tough day for us.” Canada made three errors behind starting pitcher Martine Nadeau (Québec, Qué.) who was tagged with the loss. Japan and the U.S., who share the top spot in the tournament with 4-1 records, will face-off tomorrow to determine the World Champion. What follows could be a murky tie-break scenario in which a possibility of four teams could be involved with 4-2 records. Two of those teams would be left out of the medals. Barring a major upset against winless Hong Kong in the final game of the tournament tomorrow, Canada will likely finish at 4-2, as will the loser of the Japan/U.S. game. Chinese Taipei could also finish at 4-2 with a win over Cuba while Australia has already wrapped up its schedule, also at 4-2. Standings Japan 4-1U.S.A 4-1Canada 3-2Chinese Taipei 3-2Cuba 1-4Hong Kong 0-5 TomorrowU.S.A. vs. JapanCanada vs. Hong KongChinese Taipei vs. Cuba*Box score from this game has not been released.
Baseball Canada’s national women’s team suffered its first loss, today, 7-1 against the host squad from Chinese Taipei, missing an opportunity to secure a podium finish at the 2006 Women’s World Cup in Taipei, Taiwan. Catcher Amanda Asay (Prince George, B.C.) collected the only Canadian hit in the seven-inning affair while several fielding errors keyed the victory for Taiwan who improved its record to 2-2 to stay alive in the tournament. “After the game against Japan where the intensity level was at a maximum, I think the girls were emotionally drained and tired,” said Canadian head coach André Lachance. “Our bats are going to have to come alive tomorrow if we want a chance to win the gold.” Canada’s record, meanwhile, drops to 3-1 and moves the team down one spot in the standings behind Japan (4-1) with two games remaining in the tournament. Kat Hannah (Kirkland Lake, Ont.) took the loss for Canada on the mound. Samantha Ostrom (Calgary, Alta.), Annie Kowalczyk (Mississauga, Ont.) and Marie-Josée Tremblay (Saint Honoré-de-Chicoutimi, Qué.) all pitched in relief for Canada, Tremblay closing out the game with two perfect innings of work. With the loss, Canada’s bid for gold becomes a more difficult task as five teams are still in the medal hunt with only two days remaining in the tournament. A win against Australia (3-2) tomorrow would put Canada back in the driver’s seat going in to the last day of competition where it is slated to face the entry from Hong Kong, which has been outscored 98-4 in its first four games of the tournament. Martine Nadeau (Québec, Qué.) will get the start on the mound for the Canadians. Current Standings 1) Japan 4-12) Canada 3-13) U.S.A. 3-14) Australia 3-25) Chinese Taipei 2-26) Cuba 0-47) Hong Kong 0-4 Tomorrow Hong Kong vs. CubaChinese Taipei vs. U.S.A.Australia vs. Canada*Box score for this game is unavailable.
Eight Canadians played in the major leagues yesterday. Here’s how they fared. Position Players 1. Kansas City Royals third baseman Mark Teahen was 3-for-5 with a double, a homerun, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 7-3 win over the Chicago White Sox. Teahen hit his homerun off of Freddy Garcia in the fifth inning. 2. Pittsburgh Pirates left fielder Jason Bay (Trail, B.C.) was 1-for-3 with a double, 1 RBI and 1 walk in a 3-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves. 3. Texas Rangers right fielder Matt Stairs (Fredericton, N.B.) was 1-for-5 with 1 RBI and 1 strikeout in a 10-2 win over the Minnesota Twins. 4. Twins first baseman Justin Morneau (New Westminster, B.C.) was 0-for-2 with 2 walks in a 10-2 loss to the Rangers. 5. Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Russell Martin (Chelsea, Qué.) was 0-for-3 with 1 walk in a 5-3 win over the Cincinnati Reds. 6. Braves first baseman Scott Thorman (Cambridge, Ont.) was 0-for-2 in a 3-2 win over the Pirates. Pitchers 1. Reds reliever Rheal Cormier (Moncton, N.B.) threw one scoreless inning in a 5-3 loss to the Dodgers. The line on Cormier: 1.0 innings pitched, 1 hit, 0 runs, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 10 pitches-7 strikes, 4 batters faced. 2. Baltimore Orioles starter Erik Bedard (Navan, Ont.) was tagged with his seventh loss of the season (12-7) after dropping a 2-1 decision to the Seattle Mariners. The line on Bedard: 5.1 innings pitched, 4 hits, 2 runs, 2 earned runs, 3 walks, 5 strikeouts, 1 homerun, 93 pitches-57 strikes, 24 batters faced. Today’s games featuring teams with Canadian players (Bolded teams): American LeagueMinnesota Twins @ Kansas City RoyalsTexas Rangers @ Los Angeles Angels National LeagueAtlanta Braves @ Pittsburgh PiratesArizona Diamondbacks @ Chicago Cubs – Game 1Arizona Diamondbacks @ Chicago Cubs – Game 2Los Angeles Dodges @ Cincinnati RedsPhiladelphia Phillies @ St. Louis Cardinals
First baseman Amanda Asay (Prince George, B.C.) was 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles and 3 RBI to lead Baseball Canada’s national women’s team 6-3 past Japan in a crucial battle of undefeated teams today at the Women’s Baseball World Cup in Taipei, Taiwan. With the win, Canada is now the only undefeated team remaining half-way through the tournament and is one win away from assuring itself of a top-three finish. Asay, who was named the top catcher at the Women’s National Championships July 20-23, was quick to display her offensive prowess to help Canada strike first in the game and take a 3-0 lead mid-way through the third inning. The Canadians never looked back as three Canadian pitchers staved off all Japanese comeback efforts. Martine Nadeau (Québec, Qué.) was credited with the win, retiring all eight batters she faced in relief of starter Kate Psota (Burlington, Ont.). Psota threw well, giving up three runs behind six hits in 4.1 innings of work, but was replaced by Nadeau before she could meet the five-inning requirement to qualify for the win. Kat Hannah (Kirkland Lake, Ont.) retired the final batter of the game to earn the save. After going 5-for-5 in a win over Cuba yesterday, third baseman Ashley Stephenson continued to swing a hot bat, going 3-for-4 with a run scored while Samantha Magalas was 2-for-4 with one RBI and two runs scored to help pace the Canadian attack. Having already defeated the defending gold and silver medalists (U.S.A. and Japan), Canada is now in great position to match and possibly improve on their bronze medal performance from the 2004 World Cup in Edmonton, Alta. The Canadians will look to improve to 4-0 Friday against the host squad from Chinese Taipei (1-3) before facing the Australians (3-1) Saturday and wrapping the tournament up against winless Hong Kong (0-4) on Sunday. Box Score
Third baseman Ashley Stephenson (Mississauga, Ont.) was 5-for-5 with 4 RBI and 2 runs scored as Baseball Canada’s national women’s team came from behind three times to top an upstart Cuban squad 10-8, today, moving Canada to 2-0 at the Women’s World Cup in Taipei, Taiwan. Two first-inning errors by Canadian shortstop Erin Forman (Hamilton, Ont.), allowed Cuba to take a quick 3-1 lead into the second inning where the wild see-saw affair began. Canada came back with a three-spot of their own in the top-half of the second to take a 4-3 lead, but the Cubans struck with three more in the bottom half of the inning to take another two-run lead, 6-4. After both teams were held scoreless in the third inning, Canada reclaimed a one-run lead only to have it slip away in the bottom of the fourth as Cuba drove in a pair of runs to take a 8-7 advantage. Katherine Hannah (Kirkland Lake, Ont.) picked up the win in relief, shutting Cuba out over the final 3.1 innings of work, allowing only one hit and striking out four. While Hannah stymied the Cuban offence, Canada took advantage of a tiring Yaima Ramos, who pitched all seven innings for Cuba. The Canadians scored a pair in the sixth to go ahead for good and added a final run in the seventh for the 10-8 win. “The Cubans have really improved since we played them in Havana in 2005. That team has a lot of potential,” said Canadian head coach André Lachance. “We got off to a rocky start with the two errors in the first inning, but Hannah was spectacular on the mound and Geneviève Beauchamp (St. Jérome, Qué.) continued to do damage at the plate.” Beauchamp, Karine Gagné (Granby, Qué.) and Kate Psota (Burlington, Ont.) each had a pair of RBI while Canada was also sparked by its youngest team member, 16-year-old Nicole Luchanski (Edmonton, Alta.), who was 3-for-3 with 2 runs scored. Canada does not play Wednesday but will prepare for a rematch of the 2004 World Cup Semi Final, Thursday, against Japan. The reigning silver medalists, Japan beat Canada 3-1 to advance to the 2004 championship game. Box Score
OTTAWA-The Senior Women’s Invitational began yesterday in Spruce Grove, but only two of four scheduled games were completed due to inclement weather. Four provinces (BC, Alberta, Ontario and Québec) and one regional team (Team West) are in Spruce Grove to determine a National Champion.
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