THUNDER BAY – The best international program in women’s baseball proved it on Saturday at Port Arthur Stadium.
Japan won the World Baseball Softball Confederation Women’s Baseball World Cup for the seventh straight time as they defeated the United States in an 11-6 affair.
“The girls are really happy right now . . . and I’m really happy for them,” Japan manager Risa Nakashima said.
“When I used to play in this tournament, it would go for two weeks, but now that it’s just a one-week tournament, it’s more competitive and there’s little margin for error.”
The two sides had squared off previously on Thursday with the United States snapping Japan’s 39-game win streak at the tournament, which dated back to 2012.
That gave the Americans the chance to bat at the bottom of each inning in the final and earn first place in the round-robin, but it also allowed Japan to get a good look at their opponents,
“We had lots of information on them and we used that to get ready for the final,” Nakashima said.
“We didn’t really change all that much during the week. We just kept playing the way that we did the whole tournament.
“After our extra-inning win against Canada (on Monday) we knew that it was going to be a tough tournament for the rest of the week. That was the moment where everything switched on for us and we knew that we had to be ready every time.”
Following a pair of scoreless innings, Japan came to life in the top of the third.
After getting a run across home plate when a throw from American right fielder Olivia Pichardo sailed over the head of catcher Denae Benites, the defending champions made it 2-0 on a Haruna Tadano RBI single.
Yuki Kawabata extended the lead on the next at-bat with a home run to right field.
The United States cut the lead to 4-1 in their half of the third inning, but Japan never let up as they scored three runs in the fourth frame and four more in the top of the fifth to take an 11-1 lead.
Despite the big deficit, the Americans didn’t quit.
Alex Hugo hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the fifth to make it an 11-4 game.
Then in the sixth inning, the United States scored two runs and had the bases loaded with two outs, only to see their rally end when Pichardo grounded out.
In the final frame, Ashton Lansdell came to the plate with two runners on, but popped up to Japanese catcher Nanako Hanabusa for the final out of the afternoon.
Although the team was unable to capture its first title since 2006, United States manager Veronica Alvarez was proud of her squad’s effort.
“They did an incredible job of staying united, playing like a team and supporting each other,” Alvarez said.
“They had each other’s back all week.”
Kawabata and Ayaka Deguchi led the way for Japan at the plate with a pair of RBI, while Miyu Shmizu picked up the win.
Hugo had three RBI to pace the Americans on offence. Pichardo took the loss on the mound.
The next edition of the WBSC Women’s Baseball World Cup will take place in 2027.
The host for the event will be announced in June 2025.
