USA Posts Two Run-Rule Victories Over El Salvador and Dominican Republic

MARACAY, Venezuela - The USA Pan American Qualifier Team continued its display of excellence with two wins today, El Salvador, 11-0 (5), and Dominican Republic, 15-0 (4), at the Pan American Qualifier in Maracay, Venezuela. Megan Langenfeld (Bakersfield, Calif.) is still on fire as she put up six RBI on the day going 4-for-6. She is hitting a team high .750 (12-for-16) with 17 RBI and four homeruns. 

El Salvador 0 USA 11 (5 innings) 
El Salvador did what no team has done so far in the qualifier, hold the U.S. offense to only one run through the first two innings. Caitlin Lowe (Tustin, Calif.) singled with a bunt to lead off the first ining. She stole a base then advanced to third on a throwing error by the catcher. A sac fly by Tammy Williams (Osceola, Mo.) scored Lowe. The United States did not score in the second but in the third, the offense came alive with a triple by Megan Langenfeld (Bakersfield, Calif.) kicking it off. 

Williams began to set the table for the base clearing triple, with a single to shortstop. A bunt by Andrea Duran (Selma, Calif.) and a walk issued to Kaitlin Cochran (Yorba Linda, Calif.) put three runners on base when Langenfeld hit a triple to centerfield . A groundout by Melissa Roth (Long Beach, Calif.) scored Langenfeld, giving the team a 5-0 lead. 

A double by Cochran and another triple by Langenfeld contributed two runs a piece to help the United States expand their 5-0 lead to 11-0 in the fourth inning. A sac fly by Vicky Galindo (Union City, Calif.) and a sac hit by Roth rounded out the scoring drive. 

Lowe and Langenfeld both went 3-for-3 against El Salvador with Langenfeld contributing a team high five RBI and two triples. Karla Martinez took the loss and was the only pitcher for El Salvador. 

Brandice Balschmiter (Newark, Calif.) worked four innings, giving up no hits on seven strikeouts. One El Salvador batter reached on an error by first baseman Langenfeld but would be left stranded thanks to stellar U.S. defense. 

Dominican Republic 0 USA 15 (4 innings) 

The score was not indicative of the game as 10 of the 15 runs scored game in one inning, the fourth which was enough for the U.S. to pull out a 15-0 win over the Dominican Republic in a run-ahead victory.
Again the U.S. offense would be held to only one run in the first two innings with the run coming in the second, a solo homerun by Kaitlin Cochran (Yorba Linda, Calif.) to lead off the inning. 

The U.S. took the opportunity of two Dominican Republic errors in the third to score four runs, giving the U.S. a 5-0 lead. Lowe, who was 3-for-3 against the Dominican Republic, was the only player in the lineup to get a hit in the third with Duran and Galindo drawing walks. Both Cochran and Langenfeld reached on errors. 
It was the fourth inning where the wheels fell off, with seven hits being recorded as well three batters reaching when they were hit by a pitch, including Roth who was hit by a pitch twice in the inning. Ashley Holcombe (Fayetteville, Ga.) was two-for-two in the inning with one run scored and two RBI.

Angela Tincher (Eagle Rock, Va.) earned her second win of the qualifier, one batter away from a perfect game. She allowed no runners to reach except the leadoff batter in the second inning with a hit by a pitch. She recorded nine strikeouts and a groundout to the pitcher in her four-inning victory.

The Red, White and Blue are two games away from medal rounds which begin on Friday. Next up on the schedule is Belize tomorrow at 2:00 p.m./CT. Continue to check out www.usasoftball.com for complete coverage of the Pan American Qualifier. 

About ASA 
The Amateur Softball Association, founded in 1933, is the National Governing Body of softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. The ASA has become one of the nation’s largest sports organizations and now sanctions competition in every state through a network of 83 local associations. The ASA has grown from a few hundred teams in the early days to over 240,000 teams today, representing a membership of more than three million. For more information on the ASA, visit http://www.asasoftball.com/. 

About USA Softball 
USA Softball is the brand created, operated and owned by the ASA that links the USA Men’s, Women’s, Junior Boys’ and Junior Girls’ National Team programs together. USA Softball is responsible for training, equipping and promoting these four National Teams to compete in international and domestic competitions. The USA Softball Women’s National Team is one of the only two women’s sports involved in the Olympic movement to capture three consecutive gold medals at the Olympic Games since 1996. The U.S. women have also won eight World Championship titles including the last six consecutive as well as claimed two World Cup of Softball titles. For more information about USA Softball, please visithttp://www.usasoftball.com/.

Tags: Andrea Duran, Brandice Balschmiter, Caitlin Lowe, Megan Langenfeld, Pan Am Qualifier, Tammy Williams