The Great Britain U22 Women’s Softball Team twice came from behind to tie the score, but ultimately fell by a 7-6 score to open the 2024 U22 European Softball Championships in Kutno on Monday, 5 August.
The game started just before 9 PM local time, a delayed start due to on-and-off rain throughout the day in Kutno. Elena Clark-Wilson, who just a week prior was in Brazil with the GB U18s at the World Cup, started in the circle for Great Britain. After GB went down in order to start the game, Clark-Wilson picked up where she left off in Sao Paolo, striking out two and stranding a runner aboard in a scoreless first.
Both teams would threaten in the second, but Italy would strike first. A leadoff single by Giulia Koutsoyanopulos, who represented Italy at the Softball World Cup final along with Italian starting pitcher Alexia Lacatena, followed by a one-out double for Lucia Polini, an RBI single for Delia Manera and an error on Alice Spiotta’s hit to centre gave Italy a 3-0 lead. Great Britain would get the final out as Tia Warsop’s throw from centre beat Manera to the plate, with Mia Kreuger applying the tag.
In the third, a one-out single for Kaitlyn Parisi put a runner on for GB, and Katie Burge would bring her home. Burge ripped a two-out double to right field, Parisi trotted home, and the deficit was cut to 3-1. Italy would answer right away, however, as a leadoff walk to Virginia Mambelli put a runner on for Silvia Torre, who launched a two-run homer run to right and doubled Italy’s lead. After three full innings, Italy led 5-1.
Jenna Thompson, the youngest member of the U22 team at 16, led off the fourth with a hard-hit double to left centre, and Krueger followed with a single to put runners on the corners. Both runners would take off, with Thompson coming home to score GB’s second run on the double steal. After Jessica Chan flied out to right, Cara Edwards walked before pinch-hitter Amy Hartle and Parisi were retired to end the threat.
Clark-Wilson worked a 1-2-3 fourth, tallying her fifth strikeout, and Great Britain would strike again in the fifth. Singles for Tia Warsop and Burge chased Lacatena, and Morgan Salmon greeted new pitcher Sara Desii with a single up the middle to score Warsop for the third run. An RBI flyout by Jessica Chan scored the fourth GB run, and Salmon scampered home to tie the game on a wild pitch with two out. While Hartle would fly out to end the inning, the score was tied at five in the middle of the fifth.
Clark-Wilson returned to the circle, and Mambelli walked to start the inning. Torre then singled to centre, but Mambelli was caught out by another strong through from Warsop, this time to Salmon at third. After Koutsoyanopulos walked and Sara De Luca flied out to centre, Polini sent a ball to short that Burge threw past Salmon at third base, and Italy would retake the lead, 6-5.
In the sixth, Warsop would single with one out, advance to second on a fielder’s choice by Burge, and scored on Salmon’s RBI single to left, tying the game at six. With the score knotted again, Great Britain loaded the bases, but couldn’t take the lead. Clark-Wilson, meanwhile, worked around a two-out single by Spiotta to keep the game tied into the seventh.
Hartle would walk with one out in the seventh, but could not advance past first, and Italy took their swings in the home half of the frame. Torre greeted her with a single, and Head Coach Tara Henry made the change, summoning Kailyn Haig to the circle. Haig hit Koutsoyanopulos with a 2-2 pitch, then struck out pinch hitter Lia Miller. Polini then walked to load the bases on a full count before Manera lifted a ball to left field for a game-ending RBI single.
Katie Burge contributed a 2-4 day at the plate with a double, and RBI, and a run scored, while Morgan Salmon drove in a pair of runs in a 2-4 effort at the plate. Jenna Thompson added a double, a stolen base (home) and a run, while Kaitlyn Parisi added a pair of hits and a run from the number 9 sport in the order.
Great Britain will next play tomorrow, 6 August 2024, at 10:15 AM BST as they face France in their second game of Group X. Tomorrow’s game, and all games at the 2024 U22 European Softball Championships can be watched on baseballeurope.tv.
Follow the Great Britain U-22 Women’s Team on social media @GBWomenSoftball on Facebook, X, and Instagram, and on the British Softball Federation website, britishsoftball.org.