The European Championship 2016 in Hoofddorp is entering the decisive stage. On Friday day two of the winners round robin took place as well as the consolation round ended.
The winners round robin started off with a lopsided 14-2 win by Germany over Belgium. With the loss Belgium will finish the tournament in sixth place. In the afternoon Spain beat the Czech Republic 9-3 for their third win in four games. And then in the evening the clash between arch rivals Netherlands and Italy didn’t disappoint. In the end the Dutch national team overcame deficits of 1-3 and 3-5 to win 6-5 in extra innings.
Situation prior to the final day of the Winners Round Robin:
- With the victory the Netherlands improved to 4-0 in the winners’ pool and have been qualified for the grand finale on Sunday. The game against Belgium on Saturday evening will only have statistical merit.
- The second spot in the championship game is still up for grabs. Spain would clinch it with a win over Germany.
- If the German team prevails and Italy loses at the same time against the Czech Republic, Germany would reach the final.
- If Germany and Italy win there will be three-way tie between Spain, Germany and Italy and the calculators would decide the second spot in the final.
- If Germany and Italy lose there would be a three-way tie between Germany, Italy and the Czech Republic to decide the spots three to five.
Meanwhile the consolation round for the spots 9th to 12th and the decision about relegation ended on Friday. No calculators were needed. There was also no drama. Great Britain beat up Greece 19-2 to remain in the A-Pool. Croatia shut out Russia 13-0 to re-qualify for the 2018 Euros.
Results Day 8:
Winners Round Robin:
Germany – Belgium 14-2
Belgium 001 001 0 2 4 1 Germany 145 130 X 14 14 0
Germany rebounded from an ugly 0-12 loss to Italy with a 14-2 blowout against Belgium on Friday morning at the European Championship in Hoofddorp. Germany improved to 2-2 in the Winners Round Robin, while Belgium dropped to 0-4. Germany scored ten runs in the first three frames to decide things early. Full recap.
Czech Republic – Spain 3-9
Spain 100 411 101 9 17 1 Czech Republic 000 000 300 3 7 2
Spain bounced back from the 0-1 loss to the Netherlands with a 9-3 victory over the Czech Republic on Friday afternoon. They pounded out 17 hits and scored nearly at will against the Czech team. Four runs in the fourth gave them a 5-0 lead en route to the win in the Winners Round Robin at the European Championship in Hoofddorp. They are now 3-1, while the Czech dropped to 1-3. Full recap.
Netherlands – Italy 6-5
Italy 000 002 010 2 5 8 0 Netherlands 100 000 011 3 6 15 3
The Netherlands overcame deficits of 1-3 and 3-5 against Italy in a heartbreaking 6-5 extra-inning comeback win on Friday evening in the winners round robin at the European Championship in Hoofddorp. The Dutch team scored runs in the eighth and ninth to force extra innings. In the tenth they answered Italy’s two-run top half with three runs in the bottom half to remain undefeated in the tournament. Italy dropped to 2-2. Full recap.
Consolation Round Robin 9th to 12:
Greece – Great Britain 2-19
Great Britain 070 720 3 19 24 0 Greece 200 000 0 2 7 1
Great Britain beat Greece 19-2 on Friday morning at the European Championship in Hoofddorp. With the win in the consolation round Great Britain clinched a spot in the A-Pool of the 2018 European Championship. A pair of seven-run innings decided the outcome early and blew the score wide open. Greece actually had a 2-0 lead after the first, but didn’t score afterwards. Full recap.
Russia – Croatia 0-13
Croatia 002 060 5 13 15 3 Russia 000 000 0 0 4 3
Croatia has secured a spot in the 2018 European Championship after defeating Russia 13-0 on Friday afternoon in Hoofddorp. Russia needs to requalify at the European Championship B-Pool next year. Croatia took a 2-0 lead in the third and added six runs in the fifth and five in the seventh to run away with the victory. Antonio Horvatic meanwhile celebrated a second complete game shutout in the tournament. Full recap.
Standings:
Schedule:
Complete results, box scores, schedule, statistics and live play by play is available through www.baseballstats.eu
Live radio from two games each day is available through www.meinsportradio.de
Tickets are available on the official website www.ekhonkbal2016.nl
Photo by Ezio Ratti/FIBS