Winners Round Robin: Spain – Netherlands
Netherlands 000 010 000 1 7 0 Spain 000 000 000 0 6 0
The Netherlands won the matchup between undefeated teams on Thursday evening at the European Championship in Hoofddorp. It was a nail-biter of the two top-ranked clubs in the tournament with the Dutch national team prevailing 1-0 over Spain. A run in the fifth was the difference in a pitching and defense heavy contest. The host remains undefeated, while Spain drops to 2-1 in the Winners Round Robin.
The game was decided in the fifth. Dashenko Ricardo led off the frame with a single, but was thrown out at second, when Dwayne Kemp tried to bunt him over. However Kemp was safe on first and moved to third thanks to the following single by Stijn van der Meer. Kemp then scored through a flyball by Chris Garia for the lone run of the night.
Spain had runners in scoring position in the third and the seventh, but failed to bring them home. Oscar Angulo and Jesus Martinez had two hits each. Yurendell de Caster went 3-for-4 for the Dutch team. On the mound former Major Leaguer Shairon Martis allowed just six hits and no walks in seven frames. Tom de Blok and Loek van Mil closed out the shutout. Ricardo Hernandez got charged with the tough-luck loss, conceding five hits, a run and a base on balls in 4 2/3 innings.
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