The last day of the Super Round of WBSC U-18 Men’s Softball World Cup will see five teams compete for three spots in the medal games. Mexico (3-1 record in the Super Round standings) clinched their spot in Sunday’s World Championship Final, while Japan, Canada, USA, Australia and Venezuela will play for the other three spots in the medal games.
We can expect hard fought games today with a lot on the line for most teams. Japan secured their presence in one of the medal games. The Asian champions will secure a place in the World Championship Final if they win today against Mexico. If they lose, the results of the other two games in the Super Round will determine whether they will play for the World Championship trophy or bronze medal.
For Canada and the USA all options are open, including going to the final, qualifying for the Bronze Medal Game, or ending their participation now. They need a win, and hope the other results hold, to advance to tomorrow’s final.
Australia and Venezuela battle it out to make the Bronze Medal Game. They need a win, and a combination of results, to play for bronze tomorrow.
All tournament games are streamed live on Game Timethe WBSC OTT platform.
Today’s results for the Placement Round decided the final standings from seventh to eleventh place. Czechia took seventh place yesterday; while Argentina and New Zealand climbed to eighth and ninth place with their victories today. The final standings are closed by Colombia (10th) and Singapore (11th).
Super Round
Japan vs. Mexico
Venezuela vs. Canada
8th down – Canada wins!!! A sacrifice fly to left field from Sharl Leclerc allowed Daniel Scott to score from third in a very close game at home.
Top 8th – Venezuela can’t score a tie-break runner. A strikeout and two grounders put the game away.
The game was still tied after seven innings. We go to the extras.
6th down – A pair of RBI singles from Riley Good and Sharl Leclerc tied the game again. We are now 5-5.
Top 6th – Manuel Lagarde singled with one out up the middle, and then Juan Carlos Pereira homered again, with two runners on, to give Venezuela the lead. It’s 5-3 for the South Americans.
5th down – Adrian Green tripled to center field, and scored on a sacrifice fly. Canada now leads 3-1.
4th down – Canada leads the way. A pair of walks put two runners on, and then Riley Good gave the red and white team the lead with an infield hit. Canada now leads, 2-1.
3rd down – A wild throw from Venezuelan shortstop Yeferson Colmenarez on a potential inning-ending double play, allowed Canada to tie the game, 1-1. He then ended the inning with a spectacular diving play behind second base.
Top 1st – Venezuela takes a 1-0 lead with a leadoff homer from Juan Carlos Pereira to center field. South Americans lead the way.
Australia vs USA
The USA defeated Australia today in their final match of the Super Round, and earned a spot in one of the medals tomorrow. The results of the last two games of the Super Round will determine whether the USA will play in the World Championship Final or the Bronze Medal Game.
Braden Ducharme hit the go-ahead RBI single in the bottom of the fourth for the USA, while Cody Gibbons went seven innings, striking out eight while giving up nine hits and three runs.
Because of this result, Australia was eliminated from the medal games, and would finish in fifth or sixth place, depending on the results of the other games.
Top 7th – Joe Robinson homers for Australia, but Cody Gibbons retires in the end for the win.
6th down – With two outs, USA added an insurance run on a triple to left field off the bat of Braden Ducharme. They now lead 4-2.
4th down – A poor defensive innings cost Australia the lead. Two mistakes allowed USA to take the lead. Drake Varela and Braden Ducharme with RBI singles. Now the USA leads 3-2.
Top 4th – Australia jumped again. With two outs, Timothy Gleeson was hit by a pitch, and then scored on a double to left field from Coby White. Australia lead 2-1.
3rd down – After a quick out, USA loaded the bases with three consecutive walks, forcing a visit to the circle. After that, Australian pitcher Corie List struck out Drake Varela and Logan Boom to escape unscathed. The match between the green and gold team remained 1-0.
Top 2nd – Australia put two runners in scoring position but US pitcher Cody Gibbons struck out Kylan Pearce to end the inning. Gibbons topped 80 MPH on his drop ball this inning.
Top 1st – Australia’s first on the board. A defensive error by shortstop Braden Ducharme opened the door for a two-RBI double off the bat of Ky Hurst. Australia lead 1-0.
Placement Round
Colombia vs. Argentina
Argentina secured the eighth place in the tournament after a 7-1 victory over Colombia, in the last match of the Placement Round. Genaro Correa and Tobias Zarlenga drove in seven runs for Argentina, with four and three RBIs respectively. Valentina Mata was the winning pitcher, with 13 strikeouts in five innings. He only gave up one hit.
5th down – A pair of two-RBI singles from Genaro Correa and Tobias Zarlenga extended Argentina’s lead to 7-1.
4th down – Argentina took the lead on a Genaro Correa RBI single, and a grounder from Tobias Zarlenga. They lead 3-1.
2nd down – A defensive error by the Colombian shortstop allowed Argentina to tie the game.
Top 1st – Colombia scored on a defensive error bye first baseman Juan Godoy. They lead, 1-0.
Singapore vs. New Zealand
New Zealand ended their participation in the tournament with a strong offensive performance. In the first game of the day, they used two monster innings to pull off an 18-5 victory over Singapore.
The Kiwis connected on three homers in the game, off the bats of Lennox Easthope, Maximus Russell (inside the park) and Joseph Simpson-Smith.
Top 4th – Singapore responded with a five-run rally. With two outs on the scoreboard, Singapore connected on four straight hits, including an inside-the-park homer from Ean Eu. It was his third homer of the tournament.
3rd down – A defensive error allowed Cohen Bailey to score New Zealand’s ninth run of the game.
2nd down – Lennox Easthope drove in George McCarroll to add one more for New Zealand.
Lower 1st – New Zealand scored seven in their first at bat, including an inside-the-park homer by Maximus Russell and a three-run homer from Joseph Simpson-Smith.