Great Britain
France
Great Britain Women stormed to a 16-1 victory over reigning European champions France in the opening game of the Women’s Baseball European Championships in Hluboká, Czech Republic.
Despite France entering as favourites, having claimed the title twice since the competition’s inception in 2019, GB set the tone from the very first inning.
The British side struck early, scoring three runs in the top of the first before starting pitcher Oona Ylinen dismantled the French top order, allowing just one batter to reach base before closing out the inning.
Aggressive base running, combined with defensive errors from France, fuelled another five-run burst for GB in the second inning, while the defence kept the opposition scoreless.
France’s defence managed to limit GB to a single run in the third, but the British women maintained full control, preventing any breakthrough from the French batters.
In the penultimate inning, three GB batters were hit by pitches, helping them score two more runs. Shortstop Darier Minika Malone then smashed the team’s only double of the game, adding another two runs and extending the lead before heading into the bottom of the inning.
After three shutout innings from Ylinen, Emma McLean took over on the mound. France managed their only run of the game on a sacrifice bunt, but GB quickly shut the door by retiring the next two batters.
A flurry of singles and walks in the final inning added four more runs for GB. Despite committing their only error of the game and allowing a runner to third, closing pitcher Jess Vernon and the defence wrapped things up swiftly, sealing the emphatic 16-1 win.
The Women’s National Team has laid down a marker for the programme and we now move on to the next,” said Head Coach Pietro Sollecito. “This team has an objective and today was just the first step in what we hope is a long journey. There were too many great performances to name just one, so let’s just say we had 20 out of 20 contributions to a signature win.
Saskia Davies led the team in both hits and total bases with four. Betheliza De La Paz and Artie Herbert each stole three bases.
GB Women will next face hosts Czech Republic tomorrow at 18:00 local time (17:00 BST).
For the latest news and updates from GB Baseball at the Women’s European Championship, follow Great Britain Baseball National Teams on Facebook (gb_baseballwomen), Instagram (gbbaseballwomen), and X (GBbaseballwomen).
Photos courtesy of WBSC Europe