Blu Girls gain accolades for gallant vs Italians
MANILA, Philippines – It was good while it lasted.
And when it all ended, the Philippine Blu Girls made sure everybody remembered.
The Filipina clouters did just that Wednesday as they showed incredible resilience and rock-solid resolve against the highly favored Italians before eventually falling short with a thunderstorm-delayed 6-5 defeat that concluded their WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup campaign in Castions di Strada, Italy.
The heartbreaking defeat denied the Blu Girls a chance to fight one more time for the last ticket to the eight-team World Cup Finals, which the Italians will again host next year.
Instead, it was the Japanese and the Canadians who booked the Group C berths, while the Italians have already made it being the hosts.
Nevertheless, it was still a proud moment for a small country that was never given a chance to make it this deep in the tournament.
And the Blu Girls knew they did well as they smiled and walked with their heads up when they returned to the dugout.
“While this may not be the outcome that we were hoping for, I am still immensely proud of the Blu Girls. They never flinched despite being grouped together with higher-ranking teams like Japan, Canada, Italy and Venezuela," said Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines president Jean Henri Lhuillier.
"I believe that our girls will bounce back from this and come back stronger than ever at the next World Cup. Of ourse I, with the support of the FIlipino people, will be supporting the girls for what’s to come and prepare them for their future battles," he added.
“Happy naman sila sa result after ng game although we came short, pero the way kung paano sila naglaro, alam nilang lumaban sila,” national coach Ana Santiago, for her part, said.
“Even ang organizer napuri tayo sa pinakita ng Philippines. Some of them nagsabi na hindi nila in-expect na ganito na tayo maglaro sa world level,” she added.
The country had its chances though.
Trailing 6-5 after four innings, the Blu Girls managed to send batters on base and in scoring positions in the final three innings, but they just couldn’t cash in on those opportunities.
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