Czechs will play at the main Junior League tournament
Great performances during the entire tournament and well-played, while dramatic, finale meant Czech team finished first in African-European qualification to the main tournament for Junior League 2023.
Czech Republic was represented by a selection from southern region that played the national qualification the best. Young selection managed to shock home team in their first game in Italian Modena, after they beat them 13-6. Czechs then defeated Poland 24-2 and kept themselves in the winner’s bracket. Spain awaited them in the third game. But even they didn’t have what it takes to beat Czech selection and lost 11-5.
In the finale the two teams met again, after Spain beat Italy in loser bracket. This time, however, the game was way more dramatic. Czech selection took the lead, after they scored two run in the fourth inning. Vít Ventruba controlled the game on the mound, as he only allowed one hit in six innings. However, the trouble came in the seventh inning, as he started to have control issues and hit two batters with a pitch. Spain the decreased their deficit after a hit and they kept two runners in the scoring positions. Matiáš Takeda thus came in for Ventruba. But the first batter he faced got a hit of him and Spain was suddenly leading 3-2.
Fortunately for Czechs, they still had the bottom half of the inning to mount a comback. Robin Skopal and Vít Ventruba showed they had ice in veins after they were walked. Takeda then became the hero of the moment, when he hit a walk-off triple and sent Czech to the tournament in USA.
Junior League World Series will be played between 14th and 21st August in Taylor, Michigan. Czechs are the second team certain to play there. Australian selection Eastern Phantoms was the first to qualify.
