OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla.--University of Hawai'i softball shortstop,
Jessica Iwata, is in Oklahoma City, Okla. with the USA Futures Team this week for the 2010 World Cup of Softball, July 22-26, 2010. Follow Jessica on her daily blog, "Playing for the USA," as she and the Futures team battles the national teams of Canada, Japan, and the United States of America.
Monday, July 26: USA Futures Finishes in Third Place; Final Thoughts from the World Cup
USA 3, USA Futures 0
USA Futures 9, Canada 3
Today we played our game that was postponed from last night against Team USA. We lost 3-0, but we bounced back to beat Canada, 9-3 to finish in third place in the World Cup tourney with a 3-4 record (two wins over Canada and one against Japan).
This has been a great experience and I am very appreciative to have had the opportunity to play with this team and play at the highest level with a lot of great athletes. These girls are fun to be around and are great teammates. You learn something different from every individual.The coaches are real positive and i'm glad i got the chance to work with them and listen to their theories.
Putting on the USA uniform is like nothing you could ever imagine...and listening to the National Anthem doesn't mean as much as it does when you have the "USA" across your chest. I'm living my dream and I'm very grateful to represent my country doing what I love.
Thank you for following me on my blog and for all of your support!
Sunday, July 25, USA Futures Downs Japan 2-1
USA Futures 2, Japan 1
Today, we only were able to get one of our two games in due to bad weather. We beat Japan, 2-1 in an exciting game and we are now 2-3 in the World Cup. But our second game against Team USA was postponed until tomorrow after a rainstorm with thunder and lightning came though Oklahoma City. Yesterday we lost a heartbeaker, 1-0 to Team USA on a solo home run by Alissa Haber. Then, we fell to Canada on a walk-off double by Jenn Yee in the bottom of the seventh, 5-4 in the final game of the night.
Tomorrow, we will face the US National team at noon in the make up game. If we win that, we will advance to the Championship Game of the tournament against the US senior team who has already captured a spot in the finals.
Friday, July 23, 2010: USA Future Team Defeats Canada, 5-4
USA Futures 5, Canada 4
Today we won our first game in the World Cup in a tight game over Canada, 5-4. It was a see-saw game with the lead going back and forth, but we were able to overcome a 4-2 deficit by scoring three runs in the bottom of the sixth to defeat the Canadians. Canada scored first on an RBI single in the second inning. But we came back in the bottom of the fourth to take a 2-1 lead on two RBI singles by Molly Johnson (Kentucky) and Katelyn Boyd (Arizona State). Canada then retook the lead, 4-2, on an RBI single and then a two-run homer by Jenn Salling in the top of the sixth.
But in the bottom of the sixth, we got back-to-back walks and a wild pitch that moved both runners into scoring position for Jessica Purcell-Fitu (BYU), who came through with a clutch double. Boyd then drove in the go ahead run with a single.
It was an exciting game. I didn't play on defense, but got to pinch-hit in the sixth inning, but struck out. Tomorrow we have a double-header--we play Team USA at 11:00 a.m. and then we take on Canada again at 9:00 p.m. Our game against Team USA will be on ESPN I think on a two-hour tape delay.
Thursday, July 22, 2010: Hospital Visit & Game Against Japan
Japan 3, USA Futures 2 - Box Score
Today we visited St. Anthony Hospital, where they care for mentally challenged kids from the age of 5 to about 18. There, they give them all the care and medical attention they need, as well as schooling and recreational movements. We got to talk a little bit about ourselves and what we did as athletes to try and give them some positive inspiration. We sat down and answered some of their questions and ended by signing autographs. It was very eye-opening for us and it made me realize just how lucky we are to be where we are right now. I think it was an awesome experience to volunteer there and I had a lot of fun. I also got to work on my personal speaking skills in front of a big group of people!
We were at the hospital from about 9:00-11:00 a.m., after that we came back to the hotel where I met up with
Stephanie Ricketts (who came down to watch me play). We had some lunch and later had some down time to relax before we left at 6:30 p.m. for our game.
We came up short tonight against Japan, 3-2. I didn't play on defense, but got to pinch hit in the last inning with runners on first and second. I grounded out, but was able to move both runners into scoring position, which turned out to be crucial as Shawna Wright came up afterwards and drove both runners in with a single to rightfield.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
This morning our day started fairly early, as we departed the hotel for the ASA Hall of Fame Stadium at 9:00 a.m. to our ESPN interviews. It took a little over three hours to shoot everything, so we were there until about 12:30 p.m. We were interviewed up in the press box, and it took awhile to go through everyone. We filtered in and out of the press box for interviews and photoshoots. In the meantime, we ate some sandwiches and after everyone was finished, we went back to the hotel for some down time before practice.
We left for the field again at 2:30 p.m. After a short warm-up, we worked on our first and third plays and pick-off plays with the catchers. We teamed up and worked on gap plays to the outfield with an emphasis on communicating where the play was going to in the infield who was relaying from the outfield.
After defense, we set up for hitting. We started with front toss off our coaches and finished with live pitching off of one of our coaches.
Today was about 97 degrees during practice, but there were a few clouds with a nice breeze. I think we are getting a lot better in dealing with the heat and we're adapting well as a team and playing through it.
Tomorrow we will be volunteering our time at a local hospital in the morning at about 9:30 and then we start the tournament tomorrow night against Japan at 9:00 p.m.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Today started off at about 8:30 a.m. when we met for breakfast. We left the hotel at 9:30 and headed to the ASA Hall of Fame Stadium for our first practice, in which we worked primarily on defense from 10:00 a.m. -12:00 p.m. After our warm-up, we split up into infield and outfield groups for drill work. Later, the team came together for some live situation drills and different plays. We came back to the hotel after our morning practice for some lunch and a little down time before our second practice of the day.We left the hotel at 2:30 p.m. for an offensive practice (3:00-5:00 p.m.). We did coaches front toss for a few reps, then had a coach pitch live and a coach in the cages to hit off of. We ended practice hitting off of our pitchers in live situations. That pretty much wrapped up our first day of work.
It's pretty hot and humid, so today was mostly about getting used to the playing conditions as well as getting back into a groove with our team. It was an exciting, fast-paced, upbeat day and we had a lot of fun. Tomorrow, we have our ESPN interviews in the morning and then we're having another practice from 3:00-5:00 p.m. in the afternoon.
Iwata, the 2010 Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year and all-WAC first team shortstop, just completed her freshman season with the Rainbow Wahine softball team. She finished her rookie campaign with a .367 batting average overall (76-for-207) with 65 runs scored, 18 home runs, and a school record, 21 doubles. Iwata led the WAC in conference games with a .488 average (39-for-80), 39 hits, 32 RBI, 12 doubles, and was tied with teammate, Melissa Gonzalez, with a league-high 11 home runs.
This past season, Iwata became the first UH softball player in program history to be named Louisville-Slugger/National Fastpitch Coaches Association's National Player of the Week (Apr. 13) after she had a phenomenal week on the road during two WAC series at Utah State and Boise State. In five games, Iwata hit .600 (12-for-20) with nine runs scored, 17 RBI, two doubles, and six home runs—including two grand slams. In the series finale at Boise State (Apr. 10), Iwata tied UH's and the WAC's single-game home run record with three home runs while driving in a UH and WAC single-game record, eight RBI.
Iwata is the first UH softball player to be selected to this presitigious team. The last Rainbow Wahine to play on a US national squad was Stephanie Keeler in 1993, when she was a member of the U-19 team.
The World Cup of Softball is a round-robin tournament with each team matching up against one another in pool play. Seeding will be determined following those contests with the championship games taking place on Monday, July 26. The Futures Team's game against Team USA will be televised live on ESPN at 11:00 a.m. (EST) on Saturday, July 24.
For complete information regarding the USA National teams and the 2010 World Cup of Softball, visit www.usasoftball.com.
