USA sweeps doubleheader in Japan as part of Tokyo 2020 Olympic tune-up

The USA Softball Women's National Team kicked off their series of exhibition doubleheaders ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games with two shutout victories over Iyo Bank Vertz, a professional team of the Japanese Softball League (JSL). USA edged past the Vertz with a narrow 1-0 win in game one before coming alive in game two to outlast Iyo Bank, 8-0.

Monica Abbott tallied 13 strikeouts in the opener, limiting the Vertz offense to just two hits. At the plate, Valerie Arioto and Aubree Munro paved the way for the U.S. offense with 2-for-3 outings including Arioto’s solo home run which lifted Team USA to the 1-0 win.

The U.S. offense came alive with an 8-0 win in game two of the doubleheader, forcing four errors on the Iyo Bank defense while stringing together five hits. The pitching staff of Ally Carda (Elk Grove, Calif.) and Cat Osterman (Houston, Texas) combined for seven strikeouts while limiting the Vertz to one hit in the win.

USA will return to action on Sunday, 11 July with a doubleheader against JSL teams Toyota Terriers and Hitachi Sundiva.

The Olympic softball competition will open on 21 July in Fukushima with three games. USA will face Italy at noon, Japan time.