FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 19, 2012

Canada suffers first loss against Venezuela at Pan American Championship

(Medellin, Colombia) In a very tight game, the Canadian Men`s National Team saw their record fall to 7-1 after a 2-1 loss to Venezuela (7-1) on the secondary field. All runs were scored via the long ball in the game, as Team Canada's Jeff Ellsworth (St. Lawrence, PEI) stroked a solo homerun with two outs in the top of the third inning. Venezuela answered right back in the bottom of the third with a two-run homerun to complete the scoring.

The red and white threatened to score several times in the game but stranded the bases loaded in the second and had the tying run on second in the seventh, but could not push the runner across to score. Canada left a total of seven men on base and managed four hits in the game, with Ellsworth's homerun, two singles by Bryan Abrey (Richmond, BC) and a single by Jason Hill (St. John's, NL).

Andy Skelton (Newmarket, ON) pitched the complete game for Canada, scattering three hits, four walks and striking out four batters.

The loss dropped Canada to second place in the tournament standings, but they did secure a berth to the ISF World Championship by clinching a playoff spot today. The team will now face the Dominican Republic tomorrow at 2:00pm CDT in their last round robin game. The playoff round will begin on Friday.

-SC-

For more information, please contact:

Gilles LeBlanc
Manager - Marketing and Communications
Softball Canada
(613) 797-7171
gleblanc@softball.ca