News
july2009

Canadabeats Puerto Rico to Finish Preliminary Round Undefeated

July 24, 2009

Saskatoon, SK

Canadabeats Puerto Rico to Finish Preliminary Round Undefeated
 
(Saskatoon,SK) – The Canadian Senior Men’s National Team finished the round-robin portionof the ISF Men’s World Championship by beating Puerto Rico 8-1 in five innings,giving them a 7-0 record and first place in Pool B. Starting pitcher DerekMayson (North Vancouver, BC) gave up a homerun to the game’s very first hitter,but bounced back by striking out eight batters in the five inning win. Canadawill play the United States at 8:30pm CST on Friday in their first eliminationround game. By finishing in the top two of their division, Canada has alsoearned “double-life” in the elimination round.
 
Aftergetting ahead on the game’s first hitter, Mayson left a pitch over the plateand Antonio Rivera hit it over the centerfield fence, giving Puerto Rico anearly 1-0 lead. Canada got that run back in the bottom of the second, whenColin Abbott (Portugal’s Cove, NL) led off the inning with a solo shot to rightfield. Later in the inning, Canada took the lead when Sean O’Brien (St. John’s,NL) hit a double to left field to score Dale Levy (St. Mary’s, ON), who hadwalked.
 
Withtwo outs in the third, Ian Fehrman (Townsend, ON) was hit by a pitch, followedby a solid hit by Colin Abbott to centerfield. Steve Mullaley (Freshwater, NL)then hit a solid grounder to short, but the shortstop did not get the bounce hewas hoping for and the ball rolled into centerfield, allowing Fehrman to scoreand placing runners on second and third. Dale Levy then followed with a singleup the middle to score both runners, increasing Canada’s lead to 5-1.
 
Thered hot Canadian bats kept coming in the fourth, as Sean O’Brien led off with asingle and Rob Giesbrecht (Landmark, MB) doubled to setup runners on second andthird once again. Jeff Ellsworth (St. Lawrence, PEI) then hit a grounder thatwas thrown to home to retire O’Brien at the plate, but Keith Mackintosh scoredGiesbrecht from third with a single. Ellsworth later scored on a passed ball togive Canada the 7-1 lead. The red and white ended the game on the run rule inthe bottom of the fifth, when Giesbrecht drove in Dale Levy from third with asingle.
 
DerekMayson allowed only one run on three hits, and struck out eight batters overfive innings, working a very effective changeup that repeatedly fooled theopposing hitters. At the plate, Colin Abbott, Dale Levy and Rob Giesbrecht eachcollected two hits for Canada, with Jeff Ellsworth, Keith Mackintosh and SeanO’Brien each adding one. Levy drove in two runs, while Abbott scored twice.
 
Withthe preliminary round now complete, Canada (first place in Pool B) will take onthe United States (second place in Pool B) at 8:30pm CST in their first playoffgame. The Canadian team has called for a “sea of red”, encouraging all fans inattendance to wear red. Prior to the game between Canada and the United States,undefeated New Zealand (first place in Pool A) will take on their rivals fromAustralia (Second place in Pool B) at 6:30pm. Earlier in the afternoon, Japan(third in Pool A) will take on Argentina (fourth in Pool B) at 1:00pm, andVenezuela (third in Pool B) will play Great Britain (fourth in Pool A) at3:30pm.
 
Inother scores on the final day of the preliminary round, Denmark edgedPhilippines 2-0, the Czech Republic hammered Indonesia 8-1, the United Statesoutscored Mexico 11-5, Botswana surprised Great Britain 5-1, Australia shut outArgentina 8-0, Venezuela thumped South Africa 10-1, and New Zealand shadedJapan 5-3.
 
FinalRound-Robin Standings
 
Pool A
Wins
Losses
1. New Zealand
7
0
2. United States
6
1
3. Japan
4
3
4. Great Britain
3
4
5. Philippines
3
4
6. Denmark
3
4
7. Mexico
1
6
8. Botswana
1
6
 
Pool B
Wins
Losses
1. Canada
7
0
2. Australia
6
1
3. Venezuela
5
2
4. Argentina
4
3
5. Czech Republic
3
4
6. Puerto Rico
2
5
7. South Africa
1
6
8. Indonesia
0
7
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Forgame results and tournament standings, please visit the tournament website at http://www.2009worldmensfastpitch.com/.
 
Toview the Team Canada media guide, please click the following link:  http://www.softball.ca/files/SMNTMediaGuide.pdf
 
-SC-
 
Formore information, please contact:
 
GillesLeBlanc
Manager– Marketing and Communications
SoftballCanada
(613)797-7171
 
OUR SPONSORS

TRENDING NOW
@alsfastball
FRIENDS OF AL'S FASTBALL
AU Sable AFP Fastpitch Fastpitch West International Softball Congress Men’s Fastpitch SA North American Fastpitch Association Ontario Amateur Softball Association

Ontario Masters Fastball sports betting site betway Shooters Fastpitch League Softball Canada Softball New Zealand WBSC