THUNDER BAY, Ontario - The USA Baseball Women’s National Team defeated Australia, 3-2, in its first game of World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Women’s Baseball World Cup Group A play on Tuesday at Baseball Central.
With the victory, Team USA begins play at the World Cup with an undefeated record.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Team USA put the first run of the day on the board in the third when a wild pitch allowed Valerie Perez to score from third. Two batters later, Remi Schaber drew a bases-loaded walk to push Denae Benites home and establish a 2-0 lead after three.
- Schaber added another RBI to her statline in the fifth inning with a sac fly to center that sent Alex Hugo in to score from third and make it 3-0 in favor of the U.S.
- The Australia offense responded in the opening half of the sixth inning with two RBI singles that established a 3-2 score, but Team USA recorded the final out of the inning at the plate to maintain a one-run edge.
- Team USA reliever Meggie Meidlinger took the mound in the seventh inning and struck out one batter before forcing two consecutive fly outs to end the game and secure the 3-2 victory.
NOTABLE STATS
- USA starter Elise Berger threw the first 5.2 innings on the mound, striking out one batter and allowing just two hits.
- Hugo, Anna Kimbrell, and Kelsie Whitmore each recorded base hits for Team USA.
- U.S. pitchers Berger, Niki Eckert, and Meidlinger did not walk a single batter over seven innings of work in the contest.
ON DECK
The USA Baseball Women’s National Team returns to action tomorrow at 11:30 a.m. ET for its second game of the opening round at the 2023 WBSC Women’s World Cup against Korea. All World Cup games will be streamed live on GameTime, and live updates will be provided via Twitter @USABaseballWNT.
