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With the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Women’s Softball World Cup Group Stage completed in Lima, two teams have secured the two available berths to the Finals in Redcliffe, Australia, in April 2027.
After five days of intense matchups, No. 1 Japan earned the first ticket to the finals with a dramatic walk-off victory over No. 3 Puerto Rico, leaving the tournament undefeated.
Puerto Rico then bounced back due to a stunning performance in the circle from Aleshia Ocasio to take down Venezuela 8-1 in five innings.
Japan and Puerto Rico now join Canada and Chinese Taipei, which advanced from Group Prague. Two more teams will reveal their fate in Group Oklahoma City in September.
Here are all the highlights of Japan and Puerto Rico’s clinching moments.
No. 1 Japan 2, No. 3 Puerto Rico 1
For the majority of the game, a pitcher’s duel commenced as Japan’s Yukiko Ueno faced off with Puerto Rico’s Giselle Juarez. After three scoreless innings, a sacrifice fly from Hotaru Tsukamoto put Japan on the board. Ueno was carrying a shutout into the seventh inning, but Karla Claudio’s RBI single put Puerto Rico right back into the game.
But with everything on the line in the bottom of the seventh, the defending World Champions and Olympic Gold Medalists found a way. Urara Fujimoto laid down the perfect bunt to walk off.
Although Japan remained unscathed throughout the tournament, this matchup was the first time it had been tested in Lima.
"It had been a long time since we had played a game with this level of tension. Puerto Rico's pitching was outstanding and it was a great game," Japan’s head coach Reika Utsugi told the WBSC. "We don't often have the opportunity to face teams like this, so it was a very valuable learning experience for us. Our players also fought very well. Above all, I think the most important thing was that Ueno was able to limit the damage to just one run in a difficult situation."
Ueno claimed the win on the mound, allowing just three hits with five strikeouts.
No. 3 Puerto Rico 8, No. 16 Venezuela 1
Puerto Rico shook off the devastating loss to Japan and surged straight to a Finals berth in an explosive 8-1, five-inning victory over Venezuela.
Aleshia Ocasio put up another fantastic performance on the mound, allowing three hits and one run with eight strikeouts. She was dominant at the plate as well, going back-to-back with Nia Carter to put runners on the corners in the first inning. This allowed Macey Cintron’s two-out RBI to give Puerto Rico a 2-0 lead.
"I had already spoken to Ocasio. I told her, 'If it comes down to a decisive game, the ball is yours’,” Puerto Rico’s head coach David Santos told the WBSC. “She always asks for the big moments, and that's exactly what happened. The big moment came, she got the ball again, and she got the job done."
Venezuela got its lone run in the second inning, but Puerto Rico’s offense erupted to take the lead with plenty of insurance. A pitching change from Loreley Francia to Michelle Floyd allowed Kathyria Garcia to deliver a two-out RBI single to bring Kairi Rodriguez home and make it 3-1.
The offense kept moving in the fifth, as Kathyria Garcia, Luna Taboas and Eliana Enriquez singled. Rodriguez then launched a homer over the center field wall to put the game in run-rule effect.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/onsi/softball as Japan, Puerto Rico Advance to WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup Final.
