No. 17 Philippines upsets No. 4 Australia on first day at World Cup of Softball

Post date: Jul 10, 2017 3:54:34 AM

photo: USA Softball

OKLAHOMA CITY – Timely hitting by the Philippines offense and defensive miscues by Australia led to the first upset of the World Cup of Softball.  Propelled by a four-run first inning by Philippines, Arianne Vallestero picked up three RBI while Dani Gilmore sent out a home run in the 7-5 win.

Defending champion and world No. 1 Japan opened with two wins on the opening day of play.

Japan v Canada 9:1 (5 innings)

In their first match of the tournament Japan took an early lead against Canada through a home run from Eri Yamada, while another single in the first innings put them 2-0 in front.

Four more runs in the second took Japan’s lead to 6-0 before a further three across the third and fourth gave them an unreachable lead.

Canada managed to score a single in the fifth inning but the match ended early as Japan went on to record a comfortable 9-1 win.

Puerto Rico v USA Jr National Team (JWNT) 3:1

Despite taking an early lead in the bottom of the fourth inning, the USA JWNT was unable to overcome a late inning rally by Puerto Rico.

It was a pitcher’s duel for both sides until the bottom of the fourth inning when the JWNT struck first with the early 1-0 lead.

Puerto Rico tied the game up in the top of the fifth and pushed across two more runs in the top of the sixth inning for a 3-1 lead.

USA loaded the bases with one out in the seventh, but back-to-back popups ended the game with the JWNT suffering the 3-1 loss.

Canada vs USA JWNT 4:5

The game saw five lead changes going into the seventh inning, tied at 4-4. However, USA walked to load the bases before a single to right field gave the U.S. the walk-off, 5-4 win.

Japan v Puerto Rico 8:1 (4 innings)

The reigning champions claimed a second victory after thrashing Puerto Rico 8-1.

Following a tight opening, Japan scored five unanswered runs in the third to go up 8-1, ending the game early after four innings.

USA v Philippines 4:0

Two U.S. pitchers combined for a shutout 4-0 win over Philippines.  It was a scoreless contest through the first four innings of play until the U.S. scored all four of their runs in the bottom of the fifth.

Australia v. Mexico 6:0

A grand slam by Taylah Tsitsikronis was the game’s highlight as the Aussie Spirit earned a 6-0 win over Mexico. In seven dominant innings, Australia’s Kaia Parnaby allowed just two hits and one walk, striking out seven and completing the game with 86 pitches.

USA v Mexico 8:0 (5 innings)

The U.S. offense came alive in their second contest of the day as the Eagles earned the 8-0 (five innings) shutout over Mexico. Scoring in all but one inning, USA combined for seven hits while the pitching staff allowed just one hit.

All tournament details for the WBSC-sanctioned World Cup of Softball, including live streaming, can be found here.