United States 7-3 Denmark: Ponce's 3 RBI lift USA past Denmark

William Ponce collected 3 runs and 3 RBI to lead United States as they beat Denmark 7-3 on Tuesday for their first win at the U-18 Men’s Softball World Cup in Palmerston North, New Zealand.

USA pitcher Joshua Eurich struck out six Denmark batters (7 IP, 7 H, 3R) to earn his first win of the event, while William Melin pitched six innings (7 H, 7 R, 8 SO) and was charged with the loss.

USA had an aggressive start in the first inning with an RBI single from Ponce that allowed Winterhandler to reach home. Ponce scored the second run of the game with a single off the bat of Parker Hopkins, for a 2-0 start.

Ponce came up with a two-run double to right field, to plate Rivas and Winterhalder as USA surged to a 5-0 lead at the end of the second inning. An error by Denmark's defence allowed Klayton Kilpatrick to put the USA further ahead in the third, 6-0.

In the fourth inning, USA scored again when Hopkins fired an RBI single to score Ponce and make it 7-0.

Denmark finally broke through the USA defence in the top of the fifth, as Melin fired a 2-out, 2 RBI double to the middle to plate Magnus Kirstein and Linus Kjærulff and avoid a run-difference loss. Kirstein himself bagged another run for Denmark in the top of the seventh on a single by Melin through the left side but proved to be too late as USA won the game 7-3.