Australia has knocked Chinese Taipei out of the 2023 WBSC Women's Softball World Cup, scoring in three innings to advance to the next phase of the Group Stage Playoffs: an immediate follow up game against Great Britain.

The fourth run scored by Australia from an error in the bottom of the sixth inning provided the insurance as Chinese Taipei threated to tie the game up in the seventh, scoring two runs before closer Ellen Roberts recorded the final out.

After weather caused a significant delay to the start of the game, Taipei kicked the scoring off with a home run in the second inning as Szu-Shih Li put the ball over the left field fence. Australia's defence rallied from that point, holding back their opposition until their final-inning charge.

Australia had the chance to respond by loading the bases with one out at the bottom of the second inning, but back-to-back flyouts gave the opposition a reprieve, but the threat was real, and the Spirit came good in the very next inning.

With one out, Tamieka Whitefield hit a single to centre field, Shannon Keevers drew a hit-by-pitch, Taylah Tsitsikronis moved Whitefield around with a fielders choice. With runners on first and third base and two out, Kylie Steemers stood tall with a single to centre field to score Whitefield, and Jade Wall provided the second punch, hitting a single to centre field to grab an RBI for herself by scoring Tsitsikronis.

The Australians struck again in the bottom of the fifth. Keevers led off with a fly ball to left field, flying around to third base. Tsitsikronis rewarded the effort, putting the very next pitch into centre field and scoring Keevers.

It wasn't all about the hitting - "Lady Luck" seemed to be Australia's 11th player. In the first of three unlikely events, Yi-Hsuan Su flew out to right field however the hit and run was on and Chia-Wen Shen couldn't get back to first in time, with the inning ending double play further energising the Spirit in the middle of the fifth inning. 

The second event occurred in the bottom of the sixth inning, with two batters out. Whitefield was on base when Keevers singled to left field, and then chaos ensued. Keevers overshot the base, the Chinese Taipei team missed the tag as Keevers put on a sidestep, and when she ran back to first base, the throw back to the first base bounced past the fielder. Whitefield needed no further invitation, running home easily to get the fourth - and eventually vital - run.

The third event, with two Chinese Taipei hitters on base, with Chih-Ying Lin singling to centre field, with Jade Wall fielding the ball and firing it to home, with Belinda White taking the ball and tagging the charging Szu-Shih Li. It was the first out, and while Chinese Taipei scored two runs, they needed at least three. 

Australia - on the whole - made their own luck. They only recorded a single strikeout in the lineup, while Kaia Parnaby took two strikeouts, and Ellen Roberts took one. 

The result gives the Spirit the chance to grab the second place in the Group and a guaranteed spot in the 2024 WBSC Women's Softball World Cup Finals in Italy. Their final opponent for the Group Stage playoffs: Great Britain.

Scorecard:
TPE 3R 7H 2E
AUS 4R 9H 1E

Win: Parnaby
Loss: Ke

Photo Credit: WBSC