European Softball Championships 2007
	Netherlands vs. Great Britain May 31, 2007

Compiled and Copyright © 1997-2007 by Marco Stoovelaar

Dutch open qualification pool with win
Nederlands | Box Score & More information
AMSTERDAM (Neth.) - It was an early morning on Thursday. Shortly after nine o'clock, Italian Home Plate Umpire Fabio Capitoni gave the 'Play Ball'-signal, whereafter Dutch pitcher Kristi DeVries threw the first pitch of the qualification round. The second part off the road to the final of the 15th European Softball Championships had been opened and the Dutch National Softball Team would start with a 3-0 shutout-win against Great Britain. Tonight (Thursday), the Dutch will meet Italy at 9:00 PM.

As said, the Dutch team opened the qualification round against Great Britain. A team which, by the way, is led by a wellknown coach in the Netherlands. Manager with the British squad is American-born Craig Montvidas, who somewhere in the middle of the seventies came to the Netherlands to play baseball for a year. Now, some thirty years later, Montvidas still works and lives in the Netherlands with his wife, former national softball-player Lucične Geels. In his active baseball career, Craig played for Giants Diemen, Kinheim and HCAW. With the last club, he had his hands full for some years, as he also was the Head Coach for both the big league baseball team and the softball team, besides playing himself. Hereafter, Montvidas also coached the softball-team of Twins. In the eighties, Montvidas introduced unique youth training camps for baseball and softball with Pro-Motion, which lasted a week. Successful camps, which were held in consecutive weeks throughout the country and later in the year were concluded with a big happening in which even coaches and players of the Los Angeles Dodgers participated. In the nineties, Montvidas became the Manager of the Dutch National Softball Team and a few years ago, he held the same position with the Greek National Squad en route to the Olympic Games in 2004. And now he leads the British team.

The game already had some early action, as we were able to enjoy some fine defensive plays. There was a nice reaction in the first inning by the British second baseman Katy Wilkins on a line drive by Sandra Gouverneur and rightfielder Laura Thompson made a great catch on a hit by Lynn Geertman in the second at bat. But there also was a great catch by Dutch second baseman Lynn Geertman, which eliminated Stacie Townsend. In these first two at bats, the Dutch hit two basehits. The first came (again) off the bat from lead-off hitter Saskia Kosterink in the first inning, the second was an infield-hit by Marloes Fellinger in the second inning.

From the fourth inning on, there was even more action. In the first part of this inning, the Dutch defense turned a fine double play. Pitcher Kristi DeVries caught a line drive by Kristi Yoshizawa, then eliminated runner Caley Roberts on first base. The latter had registered the first British basehit shortly before. In the home half of the fourth at bat, the first run could be projected on the nice scoreboard. Jolanda Kroesen led off with a single, then pinch-runner Dana Horeman advanced on a sac-bunt by Daisy de Peinder and reached third on a passed ball. A basehit by Marloes Fellinger gave the Dutch their first run and the lead. Hereafter, some more runners reacheed base and the British defense made their first error, but no runs were added.

Both teams held each other in balance in this attractive match-up. The British team reacted in the fifth inning with a runner on third base. With one out, Kirsten Whitt doubled to deep leftfield, advanced to third on a grounder, but stranded there. In the fifth, it also started to rain (again), but the game didn't have to be stopped. The Dutch team scored its second run in this inning. Saskia Kosterink walked and scored moments later on a basehit by Jolanda Kroesen in new pitcher Meredith Mayes, who had relieved starter Hayley Punter shortly before. In the sixth, Great Britain got another scoring opportunity. With one out, Laura Thompson doubled, but she also was left behind, as a strikeout and a grounder followed.

The Dutch added another run in the sixth inning. Marloes Fellinger started with a double (she went 3-for-3) and advanced on a flyout in rightfield. A basehit by Marjan Smit in short rightfield enabled her to score the third run. And that was it, as the Dutch team won, 3-0.
(May 31)