by Bob Fromer
Surrey, British Columbia: July 7 -- After last night's thrilling 1-0 win over China Liaoning, the GB Women's Team stood just one game away from the Final in the Elite Division at the Canadian Open Fastpitch Championships.
Today, after losing 5-0 to the undefeated California A's, the GB Team thought that they still remained one game from the Final and would have to beat the tough Chinese team for a third straight time at 11.00 am on Sunday morning in order to challenge the A's in the Championship game at 4.00 pm in the main stadium at Softball City.
But the GB Team were told at midnight tonight that the Chinese had to fly home because their visas had expired, and the forfeit puts GB straight into the Final.
GB off day
Today's contest against the California A's was GB's 13th game in 10 days, and probably the worst game they've played to date. The idea in entering the Canadian Open was to get as many competitive games as possible before travelling up to Whitehorse for the World Championships that begin on July 13, but there were signs in this game that some of the GB players might be wearing down.
GB had 14 strikeouts against California A's pitcher Blaire Luna from NCAA Division 1 powerhouse University of Texas, and committed four errors in the field, almost as many as in the rest of their games combined. Defense has been a strength for GB in this tournament and for the past two or three years, but here the defense gave the A's four unearned runs in a fifth-inning uprising against GB starter Stacie Townsend and reliever Megan Brown. That turned a tight 1-0 contest into an easy win for the A's, since GB batters have managed a total of only five hits and no runs in two games against Luna.
In fact, GB had runners in scoring position in the first, second and sixth innings, but the big hit just wasn't there, as Blaire Luna kept GB hitters off balance by combining an excellent drop curve and rise ball with subtle changes of pace. So the only GB hits in the game were a single by Amy Moore in the first inning, and a double by Morgan Parkerson and a single by Jess Legendre in the sixth. Those back-to-back hits with one out in the sixth inning hinted at a GB comeback, but Luna struck out Stacie Townsend and Karlene Headley-Cooper to dispel any GB illusions.
California dreaming
Stacie Townsend had been almost perfect against China Liaoning last night, throwing a one-hitter and facing the minimum 21 batters. But after a scoreless first inning, the California A's put a run on the board in the bottom of the second on a single by Kylee Lahmers, a groundout that moved her to second and a single to right field by Morgan Melloh. Laura Thompson charged the ball and made a strong throw home, but just too late.
Stacie Townsend racked up five strikeouts of her own over the next two innings to keep California at bay, but an error with one out in the sixth opened the floodgates. The next five California batters registered four singles and a walk, there was another GB error, a change of pitchers and four big California runs on the board to make the score 5-0 -- and that was how it ended.
Good value
Regardless of where GB finish in this tournament -- the possibilities are first or second -- the competition has provided what GB needed most heading into the World Championships, which is games and game time, especially for those players who no longer play regularly throughout the year.
GB Head Coach Hayley Scott and Assistant Coaches Celine Lassaigne and Megan Brown have had a chance to assess the strength of the team and try out players at different positions. The general conclusion, as Hayley Scott told the players after the loss to California, is that this team probably has more depth than GB teams in the past, something that should serve GB well in Whitehorse.
But first, can GB win the Canadian Open Elite Division Final? Is there a way to beat the California A's?