Talk about making a good first impression.
In her first-ever Olympic appearance, former White Rock Renegades pitcher Sara Groenewegen pitched four scoreless, hitless innings to help propel Canada to a 4-0 victory over Mexico on Day 1 of the Summer Olympics softball tournament in Fukushima, Japan.
The game, which started at 11 p.m. Pacific time Tuesday night and lasted until the wee hours of the morning here in B.C., was a dominant one for the Canadian team, especially Groenewegen, who retired the first three Mexican batters she faced in the first inning, and threw only 20 pitches through the opening two frames.
allowed only one batter to reach base, on a walk, but the runner was thrown out later in the inning while trying to steal second base.
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She was pulled after four innings, striking out three batters along the way en route to being credited with the win. She was relieved by Jenna Caira in the fifth inning before Danielle Lawrie 鈥� another former White Rock Renegade 鈥� earned the two-inning save, allowing just one hit while striking out two.
The Canadian pitchers allowed just two hits combined.
鈥淚 think she just set the tone in a great way,鈥� Caira told Olympic.ca after the game, when asked about Groenewegen鈥檚 impact. 鈥淕etting ahead, mixing the pitches, her changeup was money and stretching the zone. I think that鈥檚 Sara Groenewegen for you.
鈥淪he鈥檚 a really great person to come in there and set the tone for our team. She did exactly what she does, so it鈥檚 great.鈥�
"You can get outta this ball park right now" 馃檶 with a solo home run to give 馃嚚馃嚘a 3-0 lead over 馃嚥馃嚱
鈥� CBC Olympics (@CBCOlympics)
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Offensively, the Canadians were also sharp, scoring twice in the first inning. Victoria Hayward and Maple Ridge鈥檚 Larissa Franklin both got on base with singles 鈥� Franklin鈥檚 came on a bunt 鈥� and they both scored after singles from catcher Kaleigh Rafter and Port Coquitlam鈥檚 Jenn Salling.
In the third, Salling made it 3-0 when she knocked a home run over the right-field fence, and the lead was further extended in the fourth inning when Hayward led off with a single, moved to second base on a wild pitch and then scored on a single from Delta鈥檚 Kelsy Harshman.
Canada, currently ranked No. 3 in the world softball rankings, is back on the field this evening, taking on the No. 1-ranked United States. First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. (Pacific Time).
Semiahmoo Peninsula softball fans will have the opportunity to watch today鈥檚 game with others, as Softball City is set to host a viewing party. The event is set for the facility鈥檚 main diamond, with the game set to be played on a large screen.
鈥淥ur national team has played a starring role in the annual Canada Cup International Softball Championship at Softball City. This site is also where they earned an Olympic berth two years ago, before a large and enthusiast crowd,鈥� said Canada Cup board chair Greg Timm in a news release.
鈥淪o, it鈥檚 only fitting that we should provide an opportunity for fans and volunteers to come together, show their colours by donning red and white, and cheer on our Canadian squad as they pursue Olympic gold.鈥�
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