China Clinches Medal at Asian Games Softball

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Saturday, October 05, 2002

China Clinches Medal at Asian Games Softball

China assured itself of at least a bronze medal in women's softball at the 14th Asian Games with an 8-1 victory over the Democratic People's Republic of Korea Saturday at Gudeok Stadium.

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China assured itself of at least a bronze medal in women's softball at the 14th Asian Games with an 8-1 victory over the Democratic People's Republic of Korea Saturday at Gudeok Stadium.

With the win, China advances to play Chinese Taipei, 10-0 losers to Japan in six innings in the other semifinal Saturday. Japan assures itself of at least a silver with the victory, moving on to the gold medal game Sunday at 2 p.m.

The winner of the China and Chinese Taipei game Sunday at 10 a.m. moves on to face Japan for gold, while the loser settles for bronze.

DPR Korea held a 1-0 lead through four innings, but China scored one in the fifth before the floodgates opened in the seventh and final inning, when China scored seven runs to end DPR Korea's stunning run at this year's Asiad.

China had six hits in the seven-run seventh, including a game winning RBI-single by right fielder Wang Xiaoyan. The number eight hitter in the lineup also brought home the tying run for China in the fifth with a double, going 2-3 on the day with a run scored.

Few expected the DPR Koreans to finish the round robin portion of the tournament in a three-way tie for second place with a record of 3-2.

The DPR Korea surprised everyone with a close 1-0 loss to Japan, followed by an upset victory over Chinese Taipei. However, due to the tiebreaker rules for international competition, DPR Korea was seeded fourth, with China placed third and Chinese Taipei in second.

Both China and Chinese Taipei are now faced with the unenviable task of having to win two games in one day to claim gold, while Japan can rest thanks to Saturday's victory, knowing it has only one game Sunday.

Japan remains the heavy favorite heading into Sunday, as it has yet to allow a run at the Asiad, spanning an amazing 42 innings of scoreless softball.

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