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Team USA Falls to Chinese Taipei, 9-7 7/18/2005 VU’s David Price Gets the Start and Allows Four Runs in the No Decision SHIN-CHU, Taiwan — A three-run seventh inning was too much for the USA Baseball National Team to overcome Saturday (July 16) in a 9-7 loss to Chinese Taipei at Shin-Chu Stadium. Due to the approach of Typhoon Haitang in the Pacific Ocean, the teams will play a doubleheader Sunday. The first game is scheduled for 2 a.m. EDT (2 p.m. in Taiwan) with the second game at the originally scheduled 6:30 a.m. EDT. With one out and runners at second and third, Chien-Han broke a 6-6 tie with an RBI single. After a Yi-Wei RBI groundout, Chiang-Ho made the Chinese Taipei lead 9-6 with another RBI single. Team USA got a run back in the seventh thanks to an Adam Davis (Florida, So., Fort Myers, Fla.) RBI single. The National team put runners at the corners with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, but Drew Stubbs (Texas, So., Atlanta, Texas) was called out on strikes to end the game, which lasted three hours, 44 minutes. Chinese Taipei, playing as the visitor, built a 6-1 lead through the top half of the fourth inning. However, Team USA began climbing back into the game with two runs in the bottom of the frame on a Hunter Mense (Missouri, So., Liberty, Mo.) groundout and a Matt LaPorta (Florida, So., Port Charlotte, Fla.) two-out, two-run single down the line in left. Team USA pulled even with two more runs in the bottom of the fifth, both coming on a Davis double to right-center. Jonah Nickerson (Oregon State, So., Oregon City, Ore.) was saddled with the loss, allowing five runs, three earned, on five hits and two walks with five strikeouts 4.0-plus innings. Starter David Price (Vanderbilt, So., Murfreesboro, Tenn.) left the game after allowing four runs, three earned, on two hits and six walks with four strikeouts in 2.2 innings. Davis and Sean Doolittle (Virginia, Fr., Tabernacle, N.J.) both turned in three-hit nights for Team USA; Davis drove in three runs. LaPorta and Josh Rodriguez (Rice, So., Houston, Texas) added two-hit nights. Chinese Taipei 013 200 300 - 9 7 0USA (5-4) 100 320 100 - 7 13 4 WP — Yi-Che. LP — Nickerson (0-1). Sv — Min-Ching. T — 3:44. |
