Team Canada was on the field for the first time of the 2021 season against the Florida SouthWestern State College Buccaneers in a 10-inning exhibition game.
Offensively, Canada scored early and often facing their first live pitching since last playing in 2019. Kaleigh Rafter (Guelph, Ont.) hit a two-run homerun to left-center in the top of the first inning and Canada added two more runs in the second on a sacrifice fly and a passed ball. Jenn Salling (Port Coquitlam, B.C.) hit a two-run single in the third, with Emma Entzminger (Victoria, B.C.) driving in a run with a triple and scoring on a double to left by Janet Leung (Mississauga, Ont.) to give Canada an 8-0 lead.
Erika Polidori (Brantford, Ont.) delivered a run-scoring double in the top of the sixth and Natalie Wideman (Mississauga, Ont.) added an RBI double of her own in the eighth, with two more runs scoring on an error and sacrifice fly in the inning. Team Canada added runs on a solo homerun by Kelsey Harshman (Delta, B.C.) and a run-scoring error in the ninth, and Harshman drove in another run with a double to center in the 10th to complete the scoring for Canada.
Regula was in the circle for the first time since 2016 and struck out four batters, walked one and hit one in her two innings of work, followed by Hovinga who struck out three of the six batters she faced. Caira struck out two while also facing the minimum six batters in her two innings of work, followed by Rackel who struck out two and allowed a two-out single just past the second baseman in the seventh before retiring the side in order in the eighth. Lawrie-Locke struck out three batters and issued one walk before closing out the game.
Canada
9–1
FSW Buccaneers
Sat Apr 3 – 11:00am EDT
Team Canada opened the scoring in the top of the second when Erika Polidori (Brantford, Ont.) led off with a double and Joey Lye (Toronto, Ont.) was hit by a pitch with both runners moving up before scoring on a two-run single by Natalie Wideman (Mississauga, Ont.). Jenn Salling (Port Coquitlam, B.C.) reached on an error to lead off the third and later scored on an RBI ground out by Sara Groenewegen (Surrey, B.C.) to give Canada a 3-0 lead.
The red and white added a run in the fifth, as Emma Entzminger (Victoria, B.C.) led off with a single, stole second and moved up to third by tagging up on a fly out to right before scoring on a wild pitch. The following inning, Groenewegen reached on an error and was replaced by pinch runner Kelsey Harshman (Delta, B.C.) who advanced to second on a passed ball before scoring on a single by Lye. In the eighth, Lye led off with a double and advanced on a wild pitch before scoring on a sacrifice fly to center by Callum Pilgrim (Abbotsford, B.C.) to increase Canada's lead to 6-0.
Canada pushed three runs in to score in the ninth. Salling drew a leadoff walk, Kaleigh Rafter (Guelph, Ont.) singled and Polidori was hit by a pitch to start the inning before Janet Leung (Mississauga, Ont.) hit a two-run single and Lye later brought a run home.
Canada's pitching held the Buccaneers to only one hit over the first nine innings but three consecutive hits in the bottom of the tenth allowed them to score their run. Groenewegen pitched the first three innings, striking out four and hitting one batter. Lauren Bay Regula (Trail, B.C.) sat down all six batters she faced - four of them on strikeouts - in her two innings of work. Karissa Hovinga (Edmonton, Alta.) struck out one, Morgan Rackel (Calgary, Alta.) allowed a hit and notched two strikeouts, and Jenna Caira (Toronto, Ont.) retired two batters on strikes as all three pitched one inning. Danielle Lawrie-Locke (Langley, B.C.) struck out three batters over the last two innings, but allowed a pair of singles and an RBI double before closing out the game.
After Victoria Hayward (Toronto, Ont.) led off the game with a single and later stole second but was left stranded, the Gators opened the scoring in the bottom of the first when Canadian pitcher Sara Groenewegen (Surrey, B.C.) - pitching in her first game since 2019 - hit the first batter who later scored on a double to left. The Canadian offence picked Groenewegen up immediately with Erika Polidori (Brantford, Ont.) leading off the second with a single and scoring on a double to left by Larissa Franklin (Maple Ridge, B.C.) followed by a run-scoring single by Emma Entzminger (Victoria, B.C.) as Canada took a 2-1 lead.
Groenewegen struck out the side in the bottom of the second, but the Gators got a triple to start the bottom half of the third and went on to load the bases with no outs, but only managed to score one run on a sacrifice fly as Groenewegen struck out two more batters to keep the game tied. Canada responded once again in the top of the fourth, with Janet Leung (Mississauga, Ont.) lacing a one-out double inside right field line and moving up to third on a single by Hayward, who advanced to second on a throw to the plate. Jenn Salling (Port Coquitlam, B.C.) delivered a two-run double to left and later scored on a double by Polidori as Canada took a 5-2 lead.
Jenna Caira (Toronto, Ont.) came on in relief in the bottom of the fourth and allowed two batters to reach on a hit by pitch and a single on a tapper in front of the catcher but notched two strikeouts to keep hold the three-run lead. Caira issued a leadoff walk in the fifth before the ame was called due to inclement weather.
Polidori led Canada at the plate with a double, a single and an RBI, Hayward added two singles and Salling had the game-winning two-run double for Canada. Franklin and Leung each added a double, with Kaleigh Rafter (Guelph, Ont.) and Entzminger adding singles. In the circle, Groenewegen allowed two runs on three hits with six strikeouts in three innings, while Caira allowed a hit and struck out two in one inning.
Kelsey Harshman (Delta, B.C.) was hit by a pitch to start the game and Larissa Franklin (Maple Ridge, B.C.) - playing against her alma mater at Western Kentucky - hit a bunt single to put the two first batters on, but Canada was unable to open the scoring in the first. Meanwhile, Danielle Lawrie-Locke (Lanley, B.C.) got the ball for Canada and struck out the side in the first and retired WKU in order in the second, facing the minimum in her two inning sof work. Canada put two runners on thanks to a single by Joey Lye (Toronto, Ont.) and a walk by Franklin in the top of the third, but three fly outs kept the game scoreless.
Morgan Rackel (Calgary, Alta.) retired all six batters she faced in the third and fourth innings before Canada got on the board in the fifth. Janet Leung (Mississauga, Ont.) got the offence going by hitting a triple to right, followed by Lye using her speed to get to second on a bunt double. Harshman hit a sacifice fly to left to score Leung, followed by a two-run homerun to center by Franklin as Canada took a 3-0 lead. Karissa Hovinga (Edmonton, Alta.) kept the Hilltopper bats at bay with another three up, three down inning, while Canada added a run to its lead in the sixth when Emma Entzminger (Victoria, B.C.) singled, stole second and advanced to third when the catcher's throw was off the mark and scored on a ground out by Sara Groenewegen (Surrey, B.C.).
Lauren Bay Regula (Trail, B.C.) kept Canada's dominant pitching performance going by throwing a perfect bottom half of the sixth, and Canada once again added to its lead on a run-scoring single to right by Kaleigh Rafter (Guelph, Ont.). Western Kentucky broke up the perfect game with a one-out single in the bottom of the seventh and got another baserunner with a walk, but Regula was able to close out the game for the shutout.
Franklin paced Canada with two hits including her two-run blast and Lye contributed a double and a single. Leung tripled and Jenn Salling (Port Coquitlam, B.C.) added a double, with Rafter and Entzminger each chipping in with singles. In the circle, Canada's four pitchers limited WKU to one hit and one walk, with Lawrie striking out three and one strikeout each for Rackel and Regula. Hovinga picked up the win.
