From the National Post
By Darren Zary, Canwest News Service
Team Canada saluted their fans following their tournament-ending loss versus New Zealand at the ISF World Men’s Softball Championship in Saskatoon
Photograph by: Liam Richards, The StarPhoenix
Canada loses to New Zealand in semi-final of men’s softball worlds
SASKATOON — To counter New Zealand’s traditional Haka warrior dance, Team Canada players and coaches wrapped arms around shoulders in the pitching circle and together sang an inspiring rendition of O Canada on Sunday.
However, the home-run trot, not the Haka dance, would prove to be Canada’s demise.
The defending world champion Kiwis erupted for six runs in the bottom of the fifth inning – including three homers during a span of four batters – to erase a 4-2 deficit for a 8-5 victory before an estimated crowd of 5,000 fans at Bob Van Impe Stadium.
Australia defeated New Zealand 5-0 in the final.
It was the same song and dance for the Canucks, who settled for bronze with the loss as they closed out their 2009 International Softball Federation world championship run.
“It all happened in a hurry,” Team Canada coach Mark Smith said of New Zealand’s big fifth inning. “They’re a team that really feeds on their own momentum. They’re world champions for a reason.
“They do this over and over. They believe in themselves. They’re a very well-coached team. They’re disciplined. There’s no shame in being beat by a team like that. Offensively, they can take the ball out of the park, (Nos.) 1 through 9 in the lineup.
“If you give up eight runs, you’re going to lose the ball game. We scored five and, normally, that’s enough to win. It wasn’t today.”
A week of sunshine may have left them with a bronze tan, but the Canucks were looking for a slightly different colour of medal Sunday, playing the ISF world softball championship in their home country.
It wasn’t to be. The Kiwis made sure of that.
“They’re the best hitting team in the world and they proved that today,” said Team Canada infielder Keith Mackintosh, whose team had lost its first of two playoff lives with a 2-0 loss to Australia on Saturday night.
“We were really let down after [Saturday’s loss]. We felt we had a really good opportunity to put ourselves in a really good spot … But it is what it is. We threw it all on the field and left it there.”
Canada jumped ahead 1-0 on a solo homer by their top hitter of the tournament, Ian Fehrman. New Zealand answered right back in the bottom of the inning with a pair of runs off Canadian starter Sean Whitten, thanks to a double by Nathan Nukunuku and RBI single by Brad Rona.
Canada made it 2-2 in the third on an RBI single by Ian Fehrman and later went up 4-2 in the top of the fifth when Fehrman smacked a two-out shot down the first-base line to score a pair of runners, Jeff Ellsworth and Ryan Wolfe.
“I may have had a good week, personally, by putting the ball in play most of the time and a few key hits, but we came up a little short at the other end,” said Fehrman, who was 4-for-4 with two RBIs at the plate.
Todd Martin, who replaced Whitten, had a solid outing going until the bottom of the fifth when he gave up back-to-back homers to Nukunuku and Jarrad Martin before walking Rona. Dean Holoien faced two batters in relief, giving up a two-run blast on his first pitch to Donny Hale and single to Travis Wilson. All of a sudden, it was 6-4.
Patrick Shannon hit a single up the middle and Daniel Milne stoked a double off reliever Trevor Ethier to finish the assault and give the Kiwis a commanding 8-4 lead.
“That was the difference,” said Fehrman. “We had just put a rally together and took a two-run lead and then put together their big inning there. We were playing catch-up ball all week and we just couldn’t do it anymore.
“We left a few too many guys on. Against a good team like that, you’ve got to make it count.”
Canada cut the lead to three when Jody Eidt’s double in the sixth scored Derek Mayson, but that’s where it ended.
“We came from behind so many times this week that it didn’t really bother us,” said Eidt. “We could have folded up the tent, but we scored the next inning and gave it everything we had.
“If you at the scoreboard, we scored in four different innings. If you would have told us, before the game, we could do that, we’d be happy with that.”
Marty Grant pitched a complete game for New Zealand, allowing seven hits, three walks and striking out four.
Dean Holoien, who gave up two runs and two hits while facing just two hitters, suffered the loss. Ethier allowed two hits and struck out two in two innings of relief work.
“With a lineup like that, they can explode on you at any time and they did that,” said Ethier.
“It’s tough. No question it’s disappointing.”
Saskatoon Star Phoenix
