USSSA Pride 6 NPF Diamonds 5
Although they collected two home runs it was not enough as the NPF Tennessee Diamonds were defeated 6-5 by the USSSA Florida Pride at Foothills Stadium in Calgary, Alberta. After leading by 1-0 and 3-2 scores the Diamonds allowed three runs in the fourth inning to fall behind for good. USA Olympian Cat Osterman was excellent on the mound for the Pride tossing five innings and striking out ten while only allowing two hits for the win. Jordan Taylor took over with the last two innings for the save while striking out three. Bianca Mejia and Jessica Bachkova went deep in the loss for the Diamonds.
The Diamonds scored first in the bottom of the first inning when Mejia hit a leadoff home run for a 1-0 advantage.
The Pride answered in the second frame as Kelly Kretschman singled, Andrea Duran laid down a sacrifice bunt while also reaching on an error, Kelsey Bruder walked to load the bases, Natasha Watley collected a sacrifice fly to tie the game, and a second run scored on a passed ball for a 2-1 lead.
In the bottom of the second the Diamonds tied the game at 2-2 when Brianna Hesson walked and a run scored after a fielding error.
The Diamonds retook the lead at 3-2 in the third inning as Mejia singled, Megan Gibson walked, and Hesson drove in a run with a single.
Right back came the Pride with three runs in the fourth frame for a 5-3 advantage. Megan Willis was hit by a pitch, Watley singled, Ashley Charters walked to load the bases, Jessica Mendoza was hit by a pitch for a run batted in, and Francesca Enea singled in two runs.
The Pride added a run to the lead in the sixth when Charters walked, stole second base, and scored on a Charlotte Morgan RBI single for a 6-3 score.
In the bottom of the sixth inning the Diamonds got back to within one run at 6-5 as Jami Lobries singled and Jessica Bachkova hit a two-run home run.
Games two and three of this Women’s Pro Fastpitch series between the USSSA Florida Pride and the NPF Tennessee Diamonds will be on Wednesday August 3rd and Thursday August 4th at 6:30 at Foothills Stadium. Tickets are $16 for the Lower Bowl and $12 for the Upper Bowl. There will also be a Lunch Banquet August 3rd including an autograph session with both teams and a lower bowl ticket to the August 3rd game for $49.95 with keynote speaker Cheri Kempf, the Commissioner of the NPF and an ESPN analyst. Tickets are available at 2255 Crowchild Trail Northwest or www.calgaryvipers.com.
GAME DATE: 08/02/2011
About USSSA Florida Pride:
The USSSA Florida Pride is a professional franchise in the National Pro Fastpitch League that is owned and operated by USSSA. The amateur organization of USSSA has multi-sport coverage and encompasses teams and players from the United States and abroad.
About NPF:
National Pro Fastpitch is headquartered in Nashville, TN. The league, created to give elite female fastpitch players the opportunity to pursue a professional career in their chosen sport, has operated since 1997 under the names of Women’s Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women’s Pro Softball League (WPSL). NPF is the Official Development Partner of Major League Baseball in the category of women’s fastpitch softball since 2002.
About USSSA:
The United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA), headquartered in Osceola County, Florida, USSSA is the World’s Largest Multi-sport Athletic Organization. Founded in 1968, USSSA has grown to over 3.7 million participants, competing in 13 nationally sanctioned sports including Baseball, Fastpitch, Slow Pitch, Karate, Basketball, Soccer and more! For more information on USSSA and to register your team visit USSSA.com. Also be sure to visit USSSAToday.com for the latest USSSA News!
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