The second day at the European Championship Juniors in Bonn, Germany is history. The Czech Republic and Spain needed walk-off hits in the bottom of the ninth to pick up wins on Tuesday. The favored Dutch team beat Germany in their opener.
Slovakia – Ukraine 6-4
Slovakia improved to 2-0 with a 6-4 victory over the Ukraine. They had built up a 6-1 lead after six innings, before the Ukraine rallied for three runs in the last two frames. But it was too little too late. Jakub Izold (W 1-0) struck out eight in eight innings, allowing seven hits, four runs (1 ER) and a bb. Michal Noga scored twice for Slovakia. Dmytro Fulga drove in two for the Ukraine. Kostyantyn Korolov (L 0-1) issued five hits, three runs (2 ER) and three bb in 3 1/3 innings.
Czech Republic – France 8-7
The Czech team survived a scare against France. After leading 6-2 after seven innings and cruising towards an easy victory, the French team erased the deficit by scoring five runs total in the eighth and ninth and took the lead. But the Czech Republic came back in the bottom of the ninth. David Neveril tied the game with a RBI-Single. Matej Sucha followed with a sac fly to seal the 8-7 victory. Arnost Dubovy scored three times. Vaclav Hasik drove in three.
Spain – Belgium 9-8
A few hours later Spain experienced a similar game against Belgium. They took a 6-3 lead into the ninth, but Belgium rallied for five runs in the top of the last frame and hoped to hold on to the two-run advantage. However their pitching imploded in the bottom of the period, giving up three runs on two hits, two walks, a hit by pitch and no outs. Yanfran Martin had the decisive hit with a two-run walk off double. Nick Vanthillo drove in three for the Belgians. Martin also picked up the win on the mound. Edouard Vanheer took the loss.
Netherlands – Germany 3-1
The Dutch team opened the tournament on Tuesday with a 3-1 win over host Germany. Jim Ploeger (NED) began and conceded just one hit and a walk in three innings, striking out six. Jeroen De Haas (W 1-0) replaced him for the next 4 1/3 innings and picked up the win. Marcel Penger (L 0-1) surrendered five hits, three runs and six bb in seven innings. Lukas Steinlein collected three hits for Germany. 1,000 people followed the game in the stands.
Schedule:
Wednesday, August 5:
11:00 Russia – Netherlands
12:00 France – Spain
16:00 Italy – Czech Republic
17:00 Germany – Slovakia
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