ROCKFORD, Ill. – The United States fired on all cylinders and handed Canada its first loss of the week with a 12-0 shutout Saturday evening at the 2026 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Women’s Baseball World Cup Group Stage Rockford at Rivets Stadium. With the win, the United States improved to 4-0 and became the first team from the Group Stage to punch its ticket to the 2027 WBSC Women’s Baseball World Cup Finals.
The United States jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the first inning and never looked back. Alex Hugo provided a first-inning spark to hand the U.S. an early advantage before Ashton Lansdell added an RBI single later in the frame. After extending the lead by a run in the third, Remi Schaber launched a two-run home run in the fifth to break the game open. The United States scored six more runs over the final two innings, highlighted by two-out RBI singles from Denae Benites and Hugo. Team USA finished with 16 base hits, led by three-hit performances from Jamie Baum and Lansdell.
Team USA’s pitching staff was just as impressive as the offense, as three pitchers combined to toss a two-hit shutout. After allowing two hits through the first two frames, Naomi Ryan, Elise Berger, and Meggie Meidlinger would hold Canada hitless the remainder of the contest. Ryan worked around early traffic before settling in, allowing only two hits and striking out six over 4.0 innings to earn the win. Berger made her second appearance on the mound and struck out six batters in 2.0 innings before Meidlinger shut the door for the second consecutive game and punched out two in the final frame.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Back-to-back singles in the first by Baum and Kelsie Whitmore were followed by a hit-by-pitch to load the bases early. On a 1-1 count, Hugo lined a 1-1 pitch up the middle to give the U.S. an early 2-0 advantage.
- Lansdell extended the lead in the next at-bat, with a single through the left side to make it 3-0 after one.
- Canada threatened in the bottom of the first, but Benites eliminated any threat after throwing a runner out attempting to steal third before Ryan delivered an inning-ending punchout to strand runners on the corners.
- Amira Hondras extended the lead in the third with a two-out single through the right side to score Lansdell, who reached on a leadoff walk.
- The United States continued to pull away in the fifth, as Schaber came out first pitch swinging and crushed a two-run home run for her second homer of the week to make it 6-0.
- Hugo kept the offense rolling in the sixth with a two-out single to score Baum, who led off the frame with a base knock. From there, a series of wild pitches and defensive miscues plated two more runs for an 8-0 lead.
- Team USA poured it on late, as Kate Blunt produced an RBI while Baum and Benites each tallied RBI base hits to push the U.S. into double figures. A wild pitch later scored Benites and capped a four-run seventh inning, making it 12-0.
NOTABLES
- The Women’s National Team improved to 13-7 all-time against Canada.
- Nine players recorded hits tonight, including multi-hit outings from Jill Albayati, Baum, Hugo, Lansdell, and Whitmore.
- Team USA recorded its third shutout of Canada since 2022.
- The United States collected 16 hits in a game for the first time since 2022.
- The pitching staff combined for a program-record 14 strikeouts, surpassing the previous record of 13 set by the 2015 Women’s National Team in a 9-0 win against Puerto Rico at the XVII Pan American Games.
- Team USA’s 10 home runs are the most in a four-game span in program history, dating back to at least 2010. The previous record was seven, set by the 2019 squad.
- The U.S. leads all teams in batting average (.432), RBIs (62), and stolen bases (15).
- Lansdell leads all qualified hitters in batting average (.800), while Benites leads the field in RBIs (12).
ON DECK
Team USA wraps up the World Cup Group Stage Rockford against Hong Kong (0-4) tomorrow, July 26 at 7:00 p.m. local/8:00 p.m. ET at Rivets Stadium in Rockford, Illinois. For more information on the schedule and how to follow along, visit HERE.
SOCIAL MEDIA
To follow along with all the action with the Women’s National Team, be sure to follow @USABaseballWNT on X and @USABaseball on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X.
