Black Sox earn place at Softball World Cup
- editor59343
- Jul 15, 2024
- 2 min read
It took a while, however, mission accomplished for the New Zealand Black Sox at the WBSC Softball World Cup qualifier in Canada.
The world No 10 ranked Black Sox went into the final day playoffs needing to beat world No 1 Argentina, or win the repechage game against hosts Canada to qualify.
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Their clash with Argentina started at 4pm local time at Prime Ministers' Park in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, but the day did not finish until around midnight.
The South Americans won the clash in a tight encounter 6-5 to secure their place in the World Cup Finals next year, but the game was far from straightforward.
It was interrupted by almost three hours due to a weather delay. When the game restarted both teams exchanged the lead with no side dominating.
Argentina recovered from a 4-1 deficit in the bottom of the fourth, tying the game with a three-run rally. After that, each team traded runs until the bottom of the sixth, when Gian Scialacomo scored on a wild pitch.
For Argentina, Lucio Retamar homered in the bottom of the fourth, while Pablo Migliavacca earned the win in two innings of work.
For the Black Sox, who out-hit Argentina 9-5, Te Wera Bishop homered and collected three RBIs, while Tane Mumu and Wayne Laulu had two hits.
The loss set the Black Sox up against Canada, who immediately took the lead in the first inning with a Mathieu Roy home run.
However, the New Zealand side did not panic and slowly edged their way back into the game.
Ben Enoka was walked, and advanced to second with a bunt by Reilly Makea. He then scored on a single from Wayne Laulu. It was New Zealand's first hit of the game and tied the scores.
Enoka then gave the Black Sox the lead for the first time and effectively won the game with a solo homer to right field in the bottom of the sixth.
Later in the inning, Rhys Evans, who had been hitting near .100 for the tournament, drove in two runs with a single, earning New Zealand a 4-1 win.
Pita Rona continued his masterful pitching with a thee-hit complete-game performance and was named the top pitcher of the tournament.
The Thomas Makea-coached side can now look forward to their place in next year's World Cup Final, also in Canada.