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The Olympics are just a few months away and, in preparation of playing on the international stage, Teams USA and Mexico battled in a 3-game series over the last two days in Florida.
The U.S. came out on top in all three games, but Mexico played tough in each contest and showed that it could be pretty interesting this summer in Tokyo!
Click HERE to see who’s on Team USA
Here are recaps of the three games courtesy of info and photos by USA Softball…
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Game 3 (March 10, 2021): Team USA posts come-from-behind victory in three-game series finale against Team Mexico
CLEARWATER, Fla. –– The world-ranked No. 1 U.S. Women’s National Team overcame a two-run deficit to post a 5-3 win over No. 5 Mexico in the three-game series finale, improving to 3-0 on the 2021 “Stand Beside Her” tour, presented by Major League Baseball (MLB).
The game was scoreless through the first four innings until Team Mexico got on the board in the top of fifth, followed by a five-run sixth inning from Team USA to take the lead. U.S. pitchers Ally Carda (Elk Grove, Calif.) and Keilani Ricketts (San Jose, Calif.) held the Mexico offense to just three hits with two strikeouts apiece while the Team USA offense combined for seven hits.
Carda got the start in the circle for Team USA, retiring the first three batters she faced in order to bring leadoff batter Haylie McCleney (Morris, Ala.) to the plate, where she singled on a ground ball to centerfield followed by a double from Valerie Arioto (Pleasanton, Calif.). A one-out walk from Amanda Chidester (Allen Park, Mich.) would load the bases for Team USA, but a double play up the middle would end the inning before the U.S. could muster any runs.
Mexico had their first base runner of the game in the top of the second inning with a leadoff walk, but a diving double play from Chidester followed by a groundout to Arioto would send Team USA back to the plate for the bottom of the frame. A single from Hannah Flippen (San Diego, Calif.) would put a baserunner on for the U.S. but three ground outs would keep the game scoreless through two innings.
With both offenses quiet through the third and fourth innings, Team Mexico took the lead in the top of the fifth with a two-run homer un to left field, but two strikeouts from Carda and a fly out to Arioto would end the rally. A two-out triple from McCleney would put the Mexico lead in jeopardy, but a fly ball to third base would leave Team USA at bay. Ricketts took over pitching duties for the U.S. in the top of the sixth, forcing three groundouts to send Team USA back to offense with six outs remaining in the game.
A leadoff single from Chidester followed by a single from Edwards would put runners in scoring position for Michelle Moultrie (Jacksonville, Fla.), who used her speed to beat out a bunt and load the bases for Flippen. Coming in clutch, Flippen sent a line drive to left field to score Chidester and Edwards with Moultrie and Flippen advancing home on throwing errors, putting the U.S. on top, 4-2. McCleney added to the U.S. lead with a solo home run to right field before a strikeout ended the inning with Team USA ahead, 5-3. A home run from Mexico in the top of the seventh would cut the U.S. lead to two, but a fly out and two strikeouts from Ricketts would seal the 5-3 victory for Team USA.
Leading the U.S. offense was McCleney, going 3-for-4 at the plate with a triple and a home run while Arioto, Chidester, Edwards and Flippen each contributed with one hit apiece.
Team USA will be back in action March 12-14 as they take on the University of South Florida (USF) in three exhibition matchups followed by a solo contest against the University of Florida on March 16. Click here for more information.
The 18-player roster will be without Rachel Garcia, Dejah Mulipola and Bubba Nickles as well as assistant coaches Laura Berg, Howard Dobson, Tairia Flowers and Heather Tarr who all remain with their respective collegiate teams. Joining Head Coach Ken Eriksen to assist with coaching will be Laura Ricciardone, Kyla Holas and two-time Olympian Kelly Kretschman.
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Game 2 (March 9, 2021): Three U.S. batters go yard in 7-0 run-rule victory over Team Mexico
Behind three U.S. home runs and a stellar pitching performance from Osterman, Team USA picked up a 7-0 (six-innings) victory over Team Mexico!
Tune in to the final game of the series tomorrow at 11 am ET! pic.twitter.com/yubaw6tytZ
— USA Softball Women's National Team 🇺🇸 (@USASoftballWNT) March 9, 2021
CLEARWATER, Fla. –– Home runs and eagles flying were the name of the game today in Clearwater, Fla. as the U.S. offense erupted with a 7-0 (six innings) run-rule victory in game two of the three-game series against Team Mexico. With three U.S. batters recording home runs, Cat Osterman (Houston, Texas) took care of business in the circle for Team USA, limiting No. 5 Mexico to just two hits while tallying eight strikeouts.
Osterman came out firing, recording two strikeouts and a groundout to shut down the Mexico offense in the top of the first inning, bringing Team USA to plate. Leadoff batter Haylie McCleney (Morris, Ala.) started things off for the U.S. offense with a triple to centerfield followed by a double from Ali Aguilar (Orangevale, Calif.) to make it a 1-0 ballgame.
Mexico had their first base runner of the game in the top of the third inning with a single to centerfield, but back-to-back strikeouts from Osterman and a fly out to Hannah Flippen (San Diego, Calif.) kept the Mexico offense at bay for another inning. Kelsey Stewart (Wichita, Kan.) started the bottom of the third with a single, followed by a two-out home run from Aguilar to extend the U.S. lead, 3-0.
Neither side mustered any runs in the fourth inning despite a two-out double from Flippen, but a home run from Stewart in the bottom of the fifth put the U.S. up by four. Another strong defensive inning from Team USA would leave Mexico scoreless in the top of the sixth to bring the Red, White and Blue back to the plate where they would seal the 7-0 run-rule win with a three-run home run from Flippen to score Valerie Arioto (Pleasanton, Calif.) and Michelle Moultrie (Jacksonville, Fla.) who reached base earlier in the inning on a walk and an error.
Leading the U.S. offense was Aguilar, Flippen and Stewart with two hits apiece, including a home run from each. In the circle, Osterman retired eight of 20 batters via a strikeout while limiting the Mexico offense to two hits through six innings.
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Game 1 (March 8, 2021): No. 1 U.S. Women’s National Team posts 4-2 victory over No. 5 Mexico in 2021 “Stand Beside Her” Tour debut
The No. 1 U.S. Women's National Team 🇺🇸 posts a 4-2 victory over No. 5 Team Mexico in 2021 #StandBesideHerTour debut!
📰 » https://t.co/ptYs5wLSmP#USASoftball pic.twitter.com/zDyR4iTvSg
— USA Softball Women's National Team 🇺🇸 (@USASoftballWNT) March 9, 2021
CLEARWATER, Fla. –– Taking the field for the first time since the postponement of the 2020 Stand Beside Her tour, presented by Major League Baseball (MLB), the world-ranked No. 1 U.S. Women’s National Team (WNT) posted a 4-2 victory over No. 5 Mexico in game one of the three-game series held at Eddie C. Moore Softball Complex in Clearwater, Fla.
Team USA’s offense combined for seven hits in their 2021 debut, with Kelsey Stewart (Wichita, Kan.) and Janie Reed (Placentia, Calif.) leading the way with two hits apiece followed by Amanda Chidester (Allen Park, Mich.), Taylor Edwards (Murrieta, Calif.) and Michelle Moultrie (Jacksonville, Fla.) who each tallied one hit. Keilani Ricketts (San Jose, Calif.) got the start in the circle for the U.S., leaving the Mexico offense scoreless through three innings. Also contributing for the U.S. pitching staff was Randi Rupp (Mont Belvieu,TX), a recently added training player for the “Stand Beside Her” tour and Ally Carda (Elk Grove, Calif.).
After a scoreless first inning from both squads, Team USA took the lead in the bottom of the second following a pair of singles from Edwards and Moultrie, which were brought around to score on base hits from Stewart and Reed to give the U.S. a two-run edge.
A walk and a single for Team Mexico placed two runners on base with one out in the top of the third, but a fly out to Moultrie and Ali Aguilar (Orangevale, Calif.) kept Mexico off the board for another inning. Going yard for Team USA in the bottom of the third frame was Chidester, improving the U.S. lead to 3-0 through three innings of play. Team Mexico’s offense would break the silence in the top of the fourth after a hit-by-pitch and a pair of singles would score their first run of the game to cut Team USA’s lead, 3-1.
Entering the circle for the WNT in the top of the fifth was Rupp, retiring the first three batters she faced on a pair of fly outs and a ground ball. A quiet fifth inning from the U.S. offense would bring Team Mexico back to the plate in the top of the sixth, stringing together a pair of two-out singles before Carda took over pitching duties to end the inning with a strikeout. Team USA added to their lead in the bottom of the sixth following a one out walk from Stewart to advance Moultrie to second, who reached base on a fielder’s choice earlier in the inning. Reed followed suite with a single to load the bases for Haylie McCleney (Morris, Ala.) who drew the walk to plate Moultrie.
Carda and the U.S. defense entered the top of the seventh with a three-run lead, which was cut to two after a two-out solo home run from Team Mexico. The game looked to be interesting after a walk and a single put the tying run on first base, but a strikeout from Carda would end the game with Team USA claiming the 4-2 win.