Starr's heroics propel New Zealand past Colombia
Building on her momentum from the first game, Penny Starr's clutch hitting and four RBIs led New Zealand to an 11-9 victory over Colombia, securing their Play-Offs berth in the WBSC U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup.
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<p>New Zealand secured an <a href="https://www.wbsc.org/en/events/2024-ii-u-18-womens-softball-world-cup-group-a/schedule-and-results/box-score/146406">11-9</a> comeback victory over Colombia to clinch their spot in the Play-Offs of the <a href="https://www.wbsc.org/en/events/2024-ii-u-18-womens-softball-world-cup-group-a/home">WBSC U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup</a> Group A at Estádio Municipal de Beisebol Mie Nishi in Sao Paulo, Brazil.</p>
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:ve30/twitter-iframe {"url":"https://www.twitter.com/WBSC/status/1817004074283274706","align":"center"} -->
<blockquote class="wp-block-ve30-twitter-iframe aligncenter twitter-tweet" allowtransparency="0" allowfullscreen frameborder="0" width="auto"><a href="https://www.twitter.com/WBSC/status/1817004074283274706"></a></blockquote>
<!-- /wp:ve30/twitter-iframe -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<p>Building on her momentum from the first game, Penny Starr's
performance was pivotal in New Zealand's victory. New Zealand took an early
lead with Maysen Kurene-Iwikau's run-producing double in the first inning and a
two-RBI single by Starr in the second. Colombia tied the game in the bottom of
the second, capitalising on defensive errors and a two-RBI single by Sophia
Loreto, making it 3-3.</p>
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<p>New Zealand regained the lead in the third inning with a triple by Kaiyah Ratu, an RBI single by Kurene-Iwikau, and a run-scoring double by Maiarangi Waipara, making it 5-3. They extended their lead to 7-3 by the fourth inning, with Caitlin Henderson scoring on a squeeze play and Ratu driving in Starr with a single.</p>
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:core-embed/youtube {"url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sCRgh78oB4","type":"video","providerNameSlug":"youtube","align":"center","className":"wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio"} -->
<figure class="wp-block-embed-youtube aligncenter wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sCRgh78oB4
</div></figure>
<!-- /wp:core-embed/youtube -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<p>Colombia fought back with three runs in the bottom of the
fourth, with an Audrey Lum two-run single and an RBI single by Brooke Zuluaga,
closing the gap to 7-6. Colombia then took the lead in the fifth with a double
by Jazmin Mejia and a triple by Loreto, making it 9-7.</p>
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<p>In the top of the seventh, down to their last out, New
Zealand mounted a comeback. Clover Alapaki's single and a fielding error by Zuluaga
tied the game. Starr then drove in two more runs, bringing her total to four
RBIs for the game, and giving New Zealand the final 11-9 advantage. Angela
Harrison pitched 4.1 innings in relief, earning the win.</p>
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->