Canfield softball finishes third

Staff report

Kirkland, Wash.

It wasn’t the game the Canfield 13-14 year-old softball team wanted to be playing in, but the team walked off a winner in the Junior League World Series consolation game Saturday.

Locked in a tie with the Iloilo, Philippines in the bottom of the seventh, Amelia Manenti hit a two-out RBI single to center field that scored Ally Lambert from second base to lift Canfield to a 3-2 win.

“It was nice to end the year on a high note,” Canfield manager Kerry Durkin said. “It put a better taste in their mouth after the disappointment [Friday] night.”

Canfield came up a run short in Friday’s semifinal against the eventual tournament champion South Tampa.

Durkin said that game took so much out of his girls physically and emotionally, he was worried they weren’t going to be able to rally for the third-place game.

“I would say it wasn’t the most spirited game played,” Durkin said. “Our girls got to know the Philippines team pretty well, so it was a very friendly game.”

Bridget Durkin started the game for Canfield scattering four hits over four innings while allowing one unearned run.

Maddy Johns threw the final three innings to pick up the win.

Maura Kennedy had an RBI in the third inning for Canfield, who finished with a record of 4-3 in the tournament.