Mexico beats Pawcatuck/Westerly 9-4 in Junior League Softball World Series
Kirkland, Wash. — Olmeca (Mexico) kept Pawcatuck/Westerly winless in the Junior League (13-14) Softball World Series on Tuesday with a 9-4 victory over the East Regional champion at Everest Park.
Pawcatuck/Westerly, 0-3 in Pool B, plays Rotterdam (Netherlands) in its final pool play game at 5 p.m. Wednesday, with the winner advancing to Thursday's elimination round quarterfinals against the top seed from Pool A.
Rotterdam, like Pawcatuck/Westerly, is winless in its three games.
"(Wednesday) is all or nothing for us," manager Ray Arruda said. "If we win, we move on. And if we win, I'll take our chances against any team in the other bracket because I think we're playing in the toughest bracket."
The likely No. 1 team from Pool B is Tampa Bay (Fla.), the only unbeaten team in that pool with one game remaining.
Pawcatuck/Westerly fought back from a 5-0 deficit Tuesday and pulled within 6-4 in the fifth inning on a bases-clearing double by Trinity Lennon.
"It was so close to being a home run," Arruda said. "It hit the yellow fence cover at the very top of the fence and literally hovered before just falling back onto the field. That's just kind of the way things have been going for us so far."
Mexico survived that inning and stranded Pawcatuck/Westerly runners at second and third an inning later before breaking the game open with three runs in the bottom of the sixth, the key hit a two-run double by Regina Manrique-Aguila.
Lennon and Megan Albamonti each had a single and double for Pawcatuck/Westerly.
"We had our chances," Arruda said. "We've left a crazy amount of runners on base (eight). I think sooner or later something good is going to happen for these girls.
"They might be upset and bummed out right now, but one thing they won't do is quit. We'll keep fighting against Netherlands."
Comment threads are monitored for 48 hours after publication and then closed.