Blaine Newnham / Times associate editor
Heady medal: U.S. softball in the same league as Dream Team

DEAN RUTZ / THE SEATTLE TIMES Pitcher Lisa Fernandez jumps up off the plate after sliding safely home in the first inning. Fernandez also pitched a four-hitter in the win.

E-mail this article Print this article Search archive Most read articles Most e-mailed articles

ATHENS — By any measure — metric or otherwise — the performance here by the United States softball team was Olympian, and one for the gods.

"This is the best softball team the world has ever seen," said John Rittman, the assistant coach.

Jaime Clark, a star at the University of Washington but an alternate on this team, hung over a railing, wearing her jersey, waving an American flag and crying as the Americans walked away with the gold medal yesterday following a 5-1 victory over Australia that didn't begin to tell the story.

"It's amazing," she said, "after all we've been through."

The Americans, winning their third straight gold medal, made it look anything but difficult, outscoring teams 51-1, not allowing a run until 54-2/3 innings had gone by.

"We didn't just want to win," said Clark, "we wanted to dominate."

That they did. And while it was one for the ages, you wonder how much time softball has left on the Olympic calendar when the American national team has now won 79 games in a row, last losing in 2003 to the U.S. "B" team.

Were the Americans too dominant for their own good?

DEAN RUTZ / THE SEATTLE TIMES U.S. slugger Crystl Bustos connects for a two-run home run off Australia pitcher Tanya Harding in the first inning. Bustos also homered in the third inning of yesterday's gold-medal game.

The International Olympic Committee, which first recognized the sport in 1996 at Atlanta, has guaranteed softball a spot in the 2008 Games in China. But there are no guarantees for either softball or baseball beyond that.

"It's a no-brainer," said Herman Frazier, the head of the U.S. delegation. "The United States Olympic Committee will do everything it can to make sure softball continues.

"The stadium was filled today; the sport is growing throughout the world."

Frazier brought up the obvious comparison with the 1992 NBA-stocked Dream Team that ran roughshod over the world.

"International basketball has improved greatly since then," Frazier said. "Countries accepted the challenge."

Australia lost to the Americans three times in the tournament, by a combined score of 20-1.

"To say they aren't the best team would be a lie," said Aussie catcher Natalie Titcume.

Although the Americans won gold, the Australians beat them in Atlanta and Sydney, twice by 2-1 margins, and twice on walk-off home runs against the U.S. ace, Lisa Fernandez.

Yesterday, on the sun-caked field built on what was a runway at the old Athens airport, Fernandez redeemed herself, pitching a four-hitter.

Jenny Finch, who had allowed only a hit in eight innings, didn't get in the game. Neither did former UW star Jenny Topping, who was only hitting .667, with four hits in six at-bats, including a triple.

"This team has everything, experience, youth, offense, defense, depth and great pitching," said Rittman, the head coach at Stanford who assisted Teresa Wilson at Washington.

	DEAN RUTZ / THE SEATTLE TIMES Jaime Clark, a UW grad who was an alternate on the U.S. Olympic team, covers her heart as the U.S. national anthem is played yesterday in Athens.

"I think international softball is on the right track. They adopted the NCAA rules — putting the mound back and using the yellow ball. The game is great for television."

The Americans wasted little time getting to Australian ace Tanya Harding, who beat them twice before in the Olympics. Crystl Bustos, the beefy third baseman who is the most feared hitter in the game, busted two home runs, including one down the third-base line that would have been out of any major-league park.

"I know this is the best team I've ever played for," said Bustos, who also played for the Americans in Sydney.

Winning in Atlanta in 1996 meant winning the first time the sport was in the Olympics. It meant winning at home. Winning in Australia meant coming back from three losses to open the tournament.

Winning this time was about growing up, about watching your coach's wife topple over in an airport and die a day later from a brain aneurysm, about going to the funeral and the memorial service and then to practice.

"I kept rubbing my wedding ring," said U.S. coach Mike Candrea. "Today's performance was so inspiring."

In mid July, at an airport in Wisconsin, Sue Candrea, 48, collapsed and later died.

"People have no idea how hard this has really been," said Clark, one of three alternates with the team. "We're a family."

They wore the initials SC on their wristbands and helmets.

Fernadez said she prayed to play her best softball against Australia.

"Sue was with us all the way," said Bustos.

	DEAN RUTZ / THE SEATTLE TIMES The U.S. softball team piles on after securing the last out and the gold medal. The squad gave up just one run in the entire Olympic tournament.

Rittman ran the team while Candrea said goodbye to his wife. There was no question that he would return or that she would want him to return.

The Americans handled everything well, on and off the field.

"I think going to Sue's funeral made us focus even more," said Rittman. "It helped us put life in perspective, to think about what is really important."

In the big picture, it might not matter which country plays the best softball, but there is no doubt about which one does.

Blaine Newnham: 206-464-2364 or bnewnham@seattletimes.com.

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

E-mail this article

Print this article

Search archive

More Blaine Newnham headlines...