SURREY, BC, Canada –– The U.S. Women’s National Team (WNT) came out firing in Day 3 of the 2022 Canada Cup, outscoring their two opponents 26-0 with a pair of 13-0 (four inning) run rule victories over Czech Republic and Chinese Taipei, respectfully. The U.S. offense exploded in the two wins with a combined total of 21 hits in eight innings including an impressive nine home runs on the day with Hannah Flippen sending three out of the park followed by Jocelyn Alo with two – one of which was a grand slam. Also going yard with one long ball apiece was Baylee Klingler, Kiki Milloy, Sharlize Palacios and Taylor Pleasants.
Shining in the circle for Team USA was veteran pitcher Ally Carda and first-time WNT member Odicci Alexander who combined for the no hitter against Czech Republic before Jaylin Ford took control in Game 2 with a shutout win over Chinese Taipei. The three pitchers combined for 12 strikeouts on the day with Ford fanning nine followed by Carda with three and Alexander with one.
Game 1
Team USA 13, Czech Republic 0
The U.S. wasted no time getting on the board in Game 1 as Milloy led the game off with a solo shot to center field to give Team USA an early one-run edge. Alo followed with a double to right before back-to-back groundouts would look to leave her stranded, but Sahvanna Jaquish relit the spark for the Eagles with a double of her own to score Alo and put the U.S. up, 2-0. Flippen kept the rally going with a two-run blast followed by a single from Kayla Kowalik and the third home run of the inning off the bat of Pleasants to give the U.S. a 6-0 lead heading into the bottom of the first.
Starting out strong in the circle for Team USA, Carda retired the first three batters in order via a strikeout and two groundouts to send the U.S. back to the plate looking to continue the damage. A leadoff walk to Alo would put a runner on for the Red, White and Blue as Charla Echols and Jaquish each sent a double to the outfield to tack on two more runs for the Eagles. With two outs and Jaquish on second, Kowalik forced a fielding miscue by the Czech defense to allow Jaquish to score and extend the U.S. lead 9-0. A walk to Pleasants would look to continue the rally, but a fly out would end the at-bat.
The first base runner of the game for Czech Republic reached on a leadoff walk to start the bottom of the second inning, but a nicely fielded bunt by Echols at third and back-to-back strikeouts from Carda would strand the runner at second to end the at-bat with the U.S. leading 9-0 heading into the third.
Milloy led off the top of the third for the Eagles with a walk before stealing second to advance into scoring position for Alo who would bring her home on a single through the infield to add one to the U.S. lead. Consecutive walks to Klingler and Echols would load the bases for the U.S. as Flippen came in clutch with some situational hitting to force a fielder’s choice up the middle while Alo sped home for another Team USA run. A ground out would send the U.S. back on defense, but not before the Eagles pulled ahead 11-0.
The U.S. defense remained superior as Carda issued a pop out and two ground outs to retire the side in order and send the game to the fourth. A fielding miscue by the Czech right fielder allowed Pleasants to reach base to start off the inning before Palacios sent a two-run home run to left field to extend Team USA’s lead 13-0. With the run-rule in effect, Alexander took over pitching duties in the bottom of the fourth and came out firing with a quick 1-2-3 inning via two groundouts and a strikeout to seal the 13-0 run-rule (four innings) victory for Team USA.
With five doubles and four home runs in four innings, the U.S. offense dominated as Alo and Jaquish both led the squad with 2-for-3 performances while Carda and Alexander effectively shut down the Czech offense with four strikeouts in the combined no-hitter.
Game 2
Team USA 13, Chinese Taipei 0
Carrying the momentum into Game 2 against Chinese Taipei, the U.S. jumped ahead in the top of the second inning with a solo home run off the bat of Klingler followed by a single from Kowalik and back-to-back walks that loaded the bases for Milloy who grounded into a fielder’s choice to put Team USA on top, 2-0. That score would quickly change, though, as home run queen Alo sent the first pitch of her at-bat out of the park for a grand slam to extend the lead, 6-0. Following a walk to Jaquish, the second home run of the inning came off the bat of Flippen to tack on two more to the lead before a ground out and a strikeout would send the U.S. back to defense.
The Chinese Taipei offense managed to put two runners on in the bottom of the frame, but a pop out and two strikeouts from Ford would leave them stranded. Fueling the fire in the top of the third, Pleasants led the inning off with a walk before a triple from Palacios added another run to the lead. A walk to Milloy would put runners on the corners for Alo, though a nice jog home was all the runners would do as the NCAA home run leader sent her second long ball of the game out of the park to pull the Eagles ahead, 12-0. Looking to continue the rally, Jaquish beat out an infield ground ball but was caught stealing to clear the bases for Flippen who blasted her second home run of the game – and third of the day – after sending a deep fly ball to the wall that would tip off the centerfielder’s glove for a solo shot to put U.S. on top, 13-0.
Remaining locked in, Ford took care of business in the bottom of the third with a quick 1-2-3 inning via three-straight strikeouts. Unable to add to the lead in the top of the fourth, Team USA headed back to defense with the run-rule in effect. The Chinese Taipei offense looked to start something in the bottom of the inning after a leadoff walk and single put runners on with no outs but two strikeouts from Ford and a tracked down fly ball from Milloy in centerfield would retire the side with Team USA earning the 13-0 (four innings) run-rule win.
With two hits apiece and a combined five home runs in the win, Alo, Flippen and Klingler led the U.S. offense followed by Palacios, Jaquish, Milloy and Kowalik with one hit each. Ford went the distance in the circle for the Eagles, allowing five hits in four innings with nine strikeouts to earn the shutout win.
The Red, White and Blue will close out pool play today at 8:30pm PT against Aussie Spirit before heading into the playoff round June 24-26. Fans across the globe will have the opportunity to follow all week long through the Canada Cup livestream package, which can be purchased for $29.99. The livestream package includes live streaming or on-demand access to all games. Click here to access the live streaming package. Live stats will also be provided on USASoftball.com.
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