US, Canadian Olympic Softball teams win Wednesday warm-up games in Florida
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<p>The US and Canadian Olympic Softball Teams, ranked No. 1 and No. 3 respectively in the WBSC Women’s Softball World Rankings, continued their road to Tokyo 2020, with a pair of wins on Wednesday afternoon in Florida. USA defeated Italy’s Olympic Team, while the red and white grabbed a win over Florida International University (FIU).</p>
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<p>USA and Italy met at USSSA Space Coast Complex for a friendly matchup, the first for the European champions since their arrival in Florida a few days ago. The reigning world champions used a 13-run second inning to defeat the Azzurre by a score of 16-0. </p>
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<p>Delaney Spaulding homered twice, while Valerie Arioto, Ali Aguilar, Amanda Chidester, Haylie McCleney, Janie Reed and Hannah Flippen also belted homers. The competition continued through eight innings to allow both squads to continue their preparations for the Tokyo Olympic Games. </p>
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<p>Exactly 197 miles south, Canada posted a 9-1 win in an eight-inning friendly contest against the FIU Panthers. Canada produced 17 hits, with at least one from each of the eleven batters they sent to the plate. </p>
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<p>Lauren Bay and Jenna Caira each pitched four innings for the red and white squad.</p>
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<p>Canada and Italy will play a pair of doubleheaders on Sunday, 25 April and Monday, the 26th, at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. All games will be closed to the public for safety precautions. Streaming details will be available through the <a href="https://softball.ca"><strong>Softball Canada website</strong></a>.</p>
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<a href="https://olympicsoftball.wbsc.org/en/2021/e-2021-softball-olympic-games"><img src="https://static.wbsc.org/assets/cms/shares/Olympic_Softball_Qualified_Teams_new.jpg" alt="Tokyo 2020 – Olympic Softball" width="100%" height="auto"></a>
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