Team Canada's quest for gold at the
World Junior Baseball Championship nearly took a detour down a dangerous road.
Luckily for them, Dalton Pompey knows his way around a diamond.
Pompey came off the bench to go 1-for-3 with two RBI including the game-winning
hit in the bottom of the ninth that capped a dramatic comeback by Canada to
defeat the Czech Republic 8-7 and advance to the quarterfinals against Italy
on Friday.
"Never in doubt," said coach Greg Hamilton after his team avoided a first-round
matchup with Chinese Taipei. "Those are the ones that you fear, you really do.
"They're the games that you have to win, that you should win."
And in the end they did, climbing back from a four-run deficit in the sixth to
win Pool B in the final game of round robin play in front of a raucous crowd at
Port Arthur Stadium.
Pompey, banged up after sliding into second base on Wednesday against Panama,
showed no ill effects of the injury after roping a liner into center to score
Philip Diedrick and sending the sell-out crowd into a frenzy.
"We had a bullet that we used," Hamilton said in reference to his center
fielder. "I was hoping we could use it a little earlier but we'll take it at
anytime."
With a crowd of nearly 3,000 fans on hand in support of the host country, few
expected the Canadians to have to fight their way back against a winless Czech
Republic team.
As it happened, the Thunder Bay faithful were treated to an early taste of the
type of playoff atmosphere expected to sweep the city and Port Arthur Stadium
when the medal round begins on Friday.
By beating the Czechs and coupled with the Netherlands' improbable come-from-
behind win over Cuba, Canada's path to the championship has become much clearer
- and perhaps, a little easier.
With coaches and players preaching nothing is a given in a tournament such as
this, the fact Canada can now navigate its way to the final without facing two-
time defending champion South Korea, Team USA or Cuba has to bode well for a
country that has won gold just once in the history of the event.
After beating the Koreans in group play and hanging in tight with the Cubans,
Canada has shown its ability to contend with the tournament's incumbent
powerhouses.
But Hamilton's not biting as his team prepares to play an Italian squad with
nothing to lose and everything to gain against the heavily-favored Canadians.
"You can't take anything for granted," Hamilton said. "We're in a quarterfinal
game with a team that's playing with house money.
"If you don't come out ready, you can lose in any given night."
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