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By Bob Fromer
Ostrava, Czech Republic: August 8 – There are games where teams are beaten by superior opposition, and then there are games where teams beat themselves.
This morning's game between the GB Under-16s and Belgium, the opening game in the second playoff round at the European Cadette Championships, was definitely one of the latter.
The final score was 7-2, which sounds like a comfortable margin. But five of Belgium's seven runs were unearned, the product of five costly GB errors. And though both teams had six hits, the Belgians were allowed to make more out of theirs. Both teams left five runners on base.
So an essentially even game between two essentially even teams came down to the Belgians playing smarter and more controlled softball, and the GB Under-16s showing their inexperience in crucial situations.
Bouncing back
Despite their disappointment with the Belgian result, which effectively put paid to hopes of a top-four finish, the GB Team bounced back in valiant fashion this afternoon in taking on the undefeated tournament favourites Holland. GB took a 3-0 lead in the first inning and had the Dutch worried before eventually succumbing by a score of 11-4 in five innings.
The four runs GB scored were twice as many as the Netherlands have given up to anyone else in the tournament, and the Dutch managed only five hits off GB pitcher Amie Hutchison, who went the full five innings, while GB had seven hits off two Dutch pitchers.
But mistakes and inexperience told again as the Dutch hustled GB into six errors (the Dutch made one) and ran the bases almost at will.
So this was a day where many softball lessons were learned by the GB Under-16s, at considerable cost to their aspirations in this tournament. Overall, the point about GB players and teams playing far fewer competitive games than most of their opponents was driven home yet again.
This is a GB Under-16 Team with ability (and also some important weaknesses), but they haven't made the most of that ability here in Ostrava.
What it all means
The loss against Belgium effectively meant that GB no longer had a way to get to the final four and the Page Playoff in the tournament, unless they could somehow have beaten Holland this afternoon and Germany tomorrow morning.
GB gave it a real go against the Dutch, but victory was too much to ask.
However, GB can still finish a very creditable fifth overall with a win against Germany tomorrow at 9.00 am in what will be their last game of the tournament.
GB v Belgium
All of the GB players and coaches know that this was a winnable game that GB gave away on both sides of the ball.
On defense, four of GB's five errors led directly to five of the Belgians' seven runs, negating a fine pitching performance by Amie Hutchison, who pitched three innings plus two batters for GB, with no walks conceded and a ball/strike ratio that was her best of the tournament so far. With most of Amie's pitches on or around the plate, the Belgians did get to her for six hits, but the damage wouldn't have been nearly so great if the GB defense had been more reliable.
Lorin Cook came in to pitch with two runs in and no outs in the Belgian fourth inning and threw two scoreless and hitless innings, giving up only one walk.
For Belgium, Rubin Roef pitched all six innings, giving up six hits and two walks. But GB failed to make the most of their opportunities against her. For the first half of the game, they tried too many bunts against a Belgian defense that was playing for exactly that, and GB also lost two runners trying to steal bases against strong-armed Belgian catcher Moa Armirotto.
Bad start
After GB went up and down in order in the top of the first inning, the Belgians were allowed to get off to the best possible start – or the worst possible start from GB's point of view.
Leadoff batter Kate Geldof pushed a bunt in front of the plate. Amie Hutchison picked it up, and even though Geldof was clearly going to beat it out, Amie made the throw to first anyway. But the throw was wild and ran down to the right field corner, and Geldof came all the way around to score.
It was exactly the way that GB had scored their first run against Romania on Tuesday, but teams with GB's aspirations shouldn't be making these kinds of mistakes. Belgium then added a second run on a single by Moa Amirotto, a stolen base and a double to the fence in left centre field by Celine Janssems.
Cutting the lead
GB came right back to cut the lead in half in the top of the second inning.
GB shortstop Alana Snow reached when her Belgian counterpart fumbled her ground ball, and Alana was sacrificed to second by Laura Hirai. Catcher Eleanor Dowd then belted an 0-2 pitch down the left field line and the ball tipped off the outstretched glove of left fielder Julia Bakker for a double, with Alana scoring.
Belgium failed to score in the second inning, with Eleanor Dowd throwing out their only baserunner trying to steal second base.
But GB came up empty in top of the third before Belgium added three more runs in the bottom half of the inning.
Kate Geldof opened with a single, went to second on a passed ball and scored on a sharp single up the middle by Stine de Permentier. But when Moa Amirotto grounded out to second and Celine Janssems popped out to first, GB had hopes of getting out of the inning without further damage. But the next two Belgian batters reached on errors by GB third base player Lorin Cook. Lisa Boermans then singled, and Belgium's 3-1 lead had become 5-1.
Chipping away
GB chipped one run off the lead in the top of the fourth inning. Alana Snow led off with a single chopped over third base, and went to second and third on passed balls. Laura Hirai bounced out to short and Eleanor Dowd popped out to the same player before Lorin Cook delivered Alana with a single past second base.
The feeling still remained that GB could get to Rubin Roef for more runs, but it just wasn't happening.
And then Belgium drove the final nail in the GB coffin with two more runs in the bottom of the fourth. Kim Streux singled to lead off the inning. Kate Geldof bounced to third, but Lorin Cook's throw to second for the force play sailed into right centre field and rolled all the way to the fence, and both runners scored.
At this point, Lorin Cook moved to the pitcher's circle and Amie Hutchison took over third base, and Lorin's pitching, plus a suddenly error-free GB defense, shut down Belgium the rest of the way. But it was too late.
Final threat
GB had one last go at attacking the Belgian lead in the top of the sixth and final inning.
Alana Snow led off with yet another single chopped over third base and then stole second before Laura Hirai drove a soft single into left field, sending Alana to third. But Laura was gunned down trying to steal second base by catcher Moa Amirotto, and that broke GB's momentum.
Eleanor Dowd fouled out to the catcher and Lorin Cook popped out to short to end the game, and GB's chance for a really significant achievement at this tournament was gone.
GB v Holland
In many ways this was a magnificent effort by a GB Team that must have been very low after the Belgian result, and probably not very hopeful about pulling off a miracle win against the Dutch. But GB went for it from the word go, and before the Dutch knew what had hit them in the top of the first inning, GB had a 3-0 lead.
Left fielder Ella Henson opened the game by rolling a single straight up the middle against Dutch starter Nina Hendricks, and then both Chelsie Robison and Sian Wigington had patient at-bats to draw walks and load the bases with no one out, leading to a hurried Dutch conference in the pitcher's circle.
GB has been in this situation before in the tournament and failed to cash in, and it looked like that might happen again as Alana Snow struck out and Laura Hirai hit a bouncer that Dutch shortstop Damishah Charles turned into a fine force out at home.
But then Eleanor Dowd lined a two-strike pitch into the gap in left centre field for a double, driving in two runs, and Lorin Cook blooped a single to right field to bring in the third.
Giving it back
What GB needed was a shutdown inning in the bottom of the first to give the Dutch something to think about. But instead the Dutch scored three runs – with only one earned – to tie the game.
Damishah Charles led off and whacked Amie Hutchison's second pitch down the left field line for a triple. Jacqueline de Hoog then hit a bouncer to the right side that scored Charles, but de Hoog was safe when Laura Hirai's throw to first soared over Sian Wigington's head. Later in the inning, de Hoog scored on an infield out and Isa Los, who had walked, scored on a single to second base by Vera Roozenberg.
Now it was the Dutch who put up the shutdown inning, as GB went up and down in order in the top of the second. And Holland then took a 5-3 lead with two runs in the bottom of the inning.
Mandy van Alebeek walked and Lisa Bouwman was safe when GB failed to get an out on her ground ball. A sacrifice bunt by Damishah Charles moved the runners to second and third. Jacqueline de Hoog then bounced out to Sian Wigington at first, but when Mandy van Alebeek broke for home, Sian's throw to catcher Eleanor Dowd was in time but low and squirted beyond her as both runners scored.
GB chances
GB was not giving up, however, and continued to create chances.
In the top of the third inning, Laura Hirai reached on an infield single and Eleanor Dowd walked with two out. But Lorin Cook struck out to end the inning.
GB mounted a more serious threat in the top of the fourth. Amie Hutchison walked to lead off the inning and went to third when Damishah Charles at shortstop booted a ground ball single by Matilda Dowd, taking part in only her first full game because of an ankle injury. Jasmine Rushin came in to run for her.
The difference in experience between the Dutch and GB players now came into play. The next batter, Ella Henson, dropped a bunt in front of the plate. Dutch pitcher Nina Hendricks bobbled it, picked it up, and faked a throw to first as Amie Hutchison took off for home. Hendricks only had to shovel the ball to catcher Fleur Bos to get Amie out. Meanwhile, Jasmine Rushin had rounded second, seeing a chance to get to third, and now she was trapped. Throws from catcher to third to second completed the double play, leaving only Ella Henson on first and GB with egg on their faces.
Upping the pace
Now the game was moving faster and faster for a tired GB team, and the Dutch scored three more runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to stretch their lead to 8-3.
Mandy van Alebeek, leading off the inning, struck out but reached first when the ball got past Eleanor Dowd and her throw to first was in the dirt. Lisa Bouwman bunted, and again, GB failed to get an out. Both runners moved up on a passed ball and scored on Damishah Charles' single. And Charles moved to second on a sacrifice bunt, to third on a wild pitch and came home on another.
The game was moving beyond GB's control.
Going down fighting
But GB was determined to go down fighting, and they scored again in the top of the fifth inning against Dutch relief pitcher Lisa Hop.
Sian Wigington led off with a single to right centre. Alana Snow hit into a fielder's choice and Laura Hirai struck out, but Eleanor Dowd drew a walk and then Lorin Cook lined a double down the right field line, scoring one run and leaving runners on second and third. Another base hit could have tightened the game up considerably – but Amie Hutchison struck out swinging through a rise ball.
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The end
On another baking hot afternoon, with the temperature officially 37 degrees and hotter on the field, Amie Hutchison was clearly tiring in the bottom of the fifth inning, and the Dutch struck quickly for the three runs that ended the game on the mercy rule.
Vera Roozenburg led off with a triple down the right field line and scored on Amy Udink's bouncer that led to yet another GB error, a bad throw by shortstop Alana Snow. Mandy van Alebeek walked and Lisa Bouwman reached when Amie Hutchison bobbled her ground ball and shovelled it too late to third base looking for a force play, loading the bases.
Damishah Charles now hit a bouncer in the hole between third and short. Chelsie Robison made a fine play to come up with the ball and throw to second for what was eventually ruled a force out.
But the call didn't really matter, because while that play was going on, the Dutch runners on third and second both scampered home while the dust was still settling on the play at second base, and that was the ball game, with the score having reached 11-4.
"The girls were really disappointed about this morning's result and were really down," Head Coach Jeremy Thomas said at the end of the Dutch game. "But they picked themselves up and gave everything they had against Holland. And we showed we had learned from the first time we played them, and this time we turned baserunners into runs. Now we have to keep that momentum going for the Germany game tomorrow."
Second Playoff Round results
Six teams have gone through to the second playoff round: the Czech Republic, Russia and GB in one group, and the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany in the other. Teams in each group are playing all the teams in the other group, and results so far are as follows:
Belgium 7, GB 2
Czech Republic 10, Germany 4
Russia 8, Germany 3
Netherlands 11, GB 4
Netherlands 3, Czech Republic 0
Russia 7, Belgium 0
Tomorrow's second playoff round games will be GB v Germany, Belgium v Czech Republic and Holland v Russia.
Even if GB beats Germany tomorrow and Belgium loses to the Czech Republic, GB and Belgium will be tied for the fourth Page Playoff place between the Dutch, Russians and Czechs, and Belgium will go through on this morning's head-to-head result.
If Germany beats GB and winds up tied with Belgium, Belgium will probably still get the nod based on their 11-8 win over Germany yesterday in the first playoff round.
Either way, GB can only aspire to a fifth place finish, and will go after that tomorrow morning against Germany – on what is meant to be a cooler day – aiming to finish the tournament on a high.
Photos by Lynda Medwell
