THUNDER BAY – Canada’s bats are heating up at just the right time.
The host team at the World Baseball Softball Confederation Women’s Baseball World Cup Pool A qualifier erupted for 16 hits and walked 14 times on Wednesday night, and routed Hong Kong 22-3, a game halted after five innings because of the tournament’s mercy rule.
Not that Canada showed much mercy in the early going at Baseball Central.
Limited to just two runs in the first inning, they batted around the second and scored five more time to jump in front 7-0.
It was 10-0 after they batted in the third and 16-3 by the time they sent a dozen batters to the plate in the fourth.
It was an all-around great performance by the Canadian women, led at the plate by Quebec shortstop Alexane Fournier, who finished 5-for-6 with three runs scored and two RBIs.
“That was a very great game. We knew it was going to be an important game – though every game is important. We started very (well) and hit very well, so I think it was another great game and leads us into tomorrow to have another great game,” said Fournier, who hails from St.-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., a military town just south of Montreal.
It was a big confidence boost too, Fournier added.
“Yesterday I only had one at bat and it wasn’t like I wanted to do,” she said. “Today was a great day to just improve my confidence and be better tomorrow.”
The tomorrow she refers to is Thursday night’s contest against the tournament favourites from the United States, a team that did a number on Canada at last year’s Friendship Series in Thunder Bay, both teams entering the 7:30 p.m. Port Arthur Stadium game with identical 2-0 records.
Getting two early wins to start the five-day, six-team tournament was huge, said Alberta’s Kaitlyn Ross, who had three hits in five trips to the plate, scoring twice and driving in a pair.
“I think it’s good for momentum, and since we’re kind of a fresh team, getting that cohesion and getting each other’s backs and getting on hit trains and things like that,” Ross said.
“It’s huge for us to go up against a team like the States and it’s good for us to have these two wins under our belts, to give us a little bit of confidence.”
Hong Kong, who edged Korea 9-8 in Tuesday’s opener, struggled mightily on the mound against Canada. Starter Debby Su-Yee Mak lasted an inning and two-thirds allowing seven runs – five of them earned – on three hits and six walks. The two unearned runs came on a Justine Marin pop-up that first baseman Wing-Ki Mui couldn’t handle, though reliever Shee-In Choi did retire Ross to end the inning with no further damage.
Down 10-0 in the third, Hong Kong’s offence came to life against Canadian starter Julia Konigshofer, who found control problems, walking three in the inning, a wild pitch allowing Chung-Yan Yuen to trot home from third with the first of three runs they’d plate in the frame.
Canada got those runs back and more in the third with a six-run outburst, powered by a two-run single off the bat of Fournier. Emma-Rose Payette added a run-scoring double.
“The more we get to play as a team, the more get to compete as one unit, it helps us move to each game so we can continue to learn once step at a time,” said Canada’s coach Anthony Pluta, hopeful the hitting bug is contagious.
“That’s what you’ve got to do to win games, you’ve got to score. You’ve got to hit to score and we’re going to come out and do our best (against the U.S.).
Amy Johnson struck out five of six batters for Canada over the final two innings in relief of Konigshofer.
The U.S. downed Korea 14-0 and Mexico (1-1) doubled up Australia 16-8 in extra innings.
