The first round at the U18 European Championship in Ostrava, Czech Republic ended on Friday. The Czech Republic and France joined the Netherlands and Italy in the semi-finals on Saturday. Additionally Germany and Russia will play for fifth place. The remaining teams are set for the consolation round, which continues through Sunday.
Russia – Netherlands 0-15 (5)
The Netherlands continued to cruise through Group B like a hot knife through butter. On Friday morning they crushed Russia 15-0 in five innings. Darryl Jamoena and Aaron Groot pitched five scoreless innings of no-hit, two-walk ball. Marco Wijst went 3-for-4 with two doubles and five RBI. All nine players in the starting lineup of the Dutch scored at least a run. Denis Kasimov issued seven hits, five runs (4 ER) and two walks in three innings to take the loss.
France – Spain 8-10
Besides the 10-8 win over France, Spain suffered a defeat on Friday. Until the middle of the eighth Team Espagne had a 10-3 lead and were a lock for the second place in Group A and a spot in the semis. However France put five runs on the board in the bottom half of the frame to win the tie-breaker over Spain and Germany. A three-run triple by Tom Berg was the decisive blow. He then also pitched a scoreless ninth to seal the two-run deficit. Orlando Decena scored three times. Eric Izquiero struck out 13 in seven innings for a sour win. Antoine Rault took the loss.
Great Britain – Italy 6-16 (7)
Italy improved to 4-0 in the first round with a 16-6 rout in seven innings over Great Britain. They scored 13 of their 16 runs in the first three frames to blow things open early. Davide Azzali and Pietro Adorni scored three runs apiece. Gabriele Orefice and Giulio Monello combined for six RBI. Monello also went deep. Simone Alfinito struck out seven in 3 1/3 innings of relief for the win. Eliot Berger got charged with the loss. Miguel Rodriguez scored three of the six British runs.
Croatia – Czech Republic 0-11 (7)
The Czech Republic easily qualified for the semi-finals with an 11-0 shutout over Croatia. They took the lead in the fourth, doubled it in the sixth and added seven runs in the seventh to end it. Marek Chlup continued his strong performance in Ostrava with a home run, three runs scored and three RBI. Jan Nebenfuhr allowed four hits and a walk in six scoreless innings for the win. Antonio Horvatic dropped to 1-1 in the tournament, issuing three hits, two runs and a base on balls in 4 1/3 innings. He struck out eight.
Outlook
The semi-finals take place on Saturday. In the afternoon the Netherlands take on France at 3pm. At 7pm Italy and the Czech Republic meet in a rematch of the 2013 finals. Additionally Spain takes on Croatia and Sweden plays against Great Britain in the consolation round. Germany and Russia will meet in the game for fifth place to conclude the U18 European Championship.
Final Standings First Round
Standing Pool A
|
||||||
Pos
|
Team
|
GP
|
WO
|
LO
|
AVG
|
GB
|
1
|
Italy
|
4
|
4
|
0
|
1000
|
0
|
2
|
France
|
4
|
2
|
2
|
500
|
2
|
3
|
Germany
|
4
|
2
|
2
|
500
|
2
|
4
|
Spain
|
4
|
2
|
2
|
500
|
2
|
5
|
Great Britain
|
4
|
0
|
4
|
0
|
4
|
Standing Pool B
|
||||||
Pos
|
Team
|
GP
|
WO
|
LO
|
AVG
|
GB
|
1
|
Netherlands
|
4
|
4
|
0
|
1000
|
0
|
2
|
Czech Republic
|
4
|
3
|
1
|
750
|
1
|
3
|
Russia
|
4
|
1
|
3
|
250
|
3
|
4
|
Sweden
|
4
|
1
|
3
|
250
|
3
|
5
|
Croatia
|
4
|
1
|
3
|
250
|
3
|
Complete results, stats and live play by play is available at www.baseballstats.eu