FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 13, 2015

Team USA drops 3-2, extra-inning thriller to host Canada at the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games

TORONTO, Ontario, Canada  — Team USA rallied from behind to force the first extra-inning game of the 2015 Pan American Games in a 3-2, extra-inning loss against host country Canada.  Rallying from a 2-1 deficit, Team USA tied the game in the bottom of the seventh inning to nearly upset reigning World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) World Champion, falling just one run short in a close fought game in which the U.S. showed a lot of fight.

 

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"Our guys played a heck of a ball game," said Head Coach Denny Bruckert (Gillespie, Ill.).  "I'm very proud of our guys for the way they fought back and tied that game.  There were a few instances where we could have executed and brought a run or two in and we just couldn't push them across but we'll come back better for it and better in our game against Venezuela tomorrow."

 

Strong pitching kept both sides silent through the first two innings as both teams were kept off the board through their first half of the game.  U.S. starter Gerald Muizelaar (Grand Forks, N.D.) got off to a rough start, issuing two lead off walks to put two runners on early for the Canadians.  With two on and Canada threatening to score, Freddy Carmona (San Antonio, Texas) connected with shortstop Nick Mullins (Toms River, N.J.) to pick off an attempted steal to third.  A popup to Mullins at short gave the U.S. two outs when Muizelaar took control of the game and issued a strikeout to squash the Canadian rally.

 

The U.S. offense struggled early in the game as Canada's starter Sean Cleary retired the side order in the bottom of the first inning with three strikeouts.  Canada would get another base runner in the top of the second inning with a walk, but Team USA's defense held strong behind Muizelaar as a series of ground outs kept the game tied at zero.

 

The Red, White and Blue would get their first base runner of the game in the bottom of the second inning when Chase Turner (San Jose, Calif.) reached on a walk.  With Turner on first, Carmona got a good piece of the ball with a line drive out to the shortstop to hold the runner at first.  Down to an 0-2 count, Kris Bogach (Huguenot, N.Y.) sent a long fly ball that looked to clear the right field fence, but Canada's right fielder leaped up to snag the out.

 

Canada threatened to score again in the top of the third inning with a hit batter and a pair of walks.  With the bases loaded and two outs, Muizelaar faced the pressure head on and issued a looking strikeout to quell the scoring opportunity for the Canadians.  Team USA put more runners on base in the bottom of the third as Pat Sagdal (Richland, Wash.) was issued a walk and stole second and third to put the first U.S. runner in scoring position.  A Derrick Zechman (Watsontown, Pa.) put runners on the corner, but a strikeout kept Team USA from plating the run and the game remained scoreless.

 

A single would get Canada's leadoff batter on in the top of the fourth inning, but Muizelaar came alive in the circle.  A pair of strikeouts kept the runner at first before Sagdal laid out for a ball in center for the third out of the inning.  Josh Johnson (El Paso, Texas) proved why he's in the cleanup spot in the lineup in the bottom half of the frame, sending the ball over the right field fence on a full count to plate the first run of the game.  Turner followed with a single, but a pair of strikeouts and a fly out to the left fielder kept the U.S. from furthering their lead.

 

Canada would respond in the top of the fifth inning by taking the lead on a pair of timely hits.  With a leadoff double, the runner would advance on a passed ball and was kept in place with a line drive to Zechman for the first out.  The out prompted a pitching change for the U.S. as Tony Mancha (Las Cruces, N.M.) entered in relief for Muizelaar.  Canada's Jeff Ellsworth then cleared the bases with a home run over the left field fence to give Canada a 2-1 edge over the U.S. 

 

That score would hold until the bottom of the seventh inning when the eagles mounted a rally to tie up the game.  Bogach got a leadoff single to get the momentum going before being subbed out for a pinch runner.  The runner, Kevin Castillo (Long Beach, Calif.), moved to second on a walk to Mullins to put two runners on with no outs.  Needing to push at least one run across, Sagdal did just that when he hit a hard ground ball that bounced off the third baseman's glove, giving Castillo plenty of time to score the tying run and send the game into extra innings.

 

As the game entered the international tie-breaker (ITB) rule, Ellsworth started out at second base for Canada and he would come around to score on a one-out single from Jason Hill.  The U.S. defense then came up with a big double play to get them back to the plate with Canada leading 3-2.  The U.S. was unable to advance ITB runner Johnson as a strikeout and a game-ending double play by Canada's shortstop handed the U.S. their first loss of the Pan American Games.

 

"Any game you play against Canada is going to be tough," said Johnson.  "We had a lot of contributions from a lot of different people.  It never feels good to lose, but at the same time if we come out tomorrow and bounce back against Venezuela we'll be back on track."

 

Mancha was charged with the loss, giving up one earned run and four hits while striking out four through three and two-third innings.  Muizelaar issued two hits, five walks and four strikeouts through the first four and one-third innings.

 

Team USA will look to rebound in their next game in a 2 p.m. EDT battle against Venezuela.  Live stats will be available throughout the Pan American Games and fans at home can follow along with recaps and more at ASAUSASoftball.com.

 

 

About ASA/USA Softball

Founded in 1933, the Amateur Softball Association (ASA)/USA Softball is the National Governing Body Softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. One of the nation’s largest sports organizations, ASA/USA Softball sanctions competition in every state through a network of 74 local associations and has grown from a few hundred teams in the early days to over 165,000 teams today, representing a membership of more than 2.5 million.  ASA/USA is responsible for training, equipping and promoting the six USA Softball National Teams that compete in international and domestic competitions. The USA Softball Women’s National Team is one of only two women’s sports involved in the Olympic movement to capture three consecutive gold medals at the Olympic Games since 1996. The U.S. women have also won nine World Championship titles as well as claimed eight World Cup of Softball titles. For more information about ASA/USA Softball, please visithttp://www.asausasoftball.com/.

 

 

 

Codi Warren

 

Assistant Director of Marketing and Communications

Amateur Softball Association of America/USA Softball

Office 405.425.3431 | Cell 405. 420. 2817