Jamie Southern (Clovis, Calif.,) was dominating in the circle for the Red, White and Blue tossing a no-hitter while striking out seven. She allowed only four baserunners the entire game and did not allow a ball out of the infield.

“Jamie Southern threw and exceptional game tonight and Stacey Nuveman called a great game,” said head coach Mike Candrea. “It’s great to get back on the winning track and secure the top seed at the Pan Am Games and a spot in the World Championships.”

The U.S. scored all the runs it would need in the third inning. Jenny Topping (Whittier, Calif.) walked, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Lovie Jung (Fountain Valley, Calif.) and scored on a single by Natasha Watley (Irvine, Calif.) who later scored on a wild pitch.

Canada’s Lauren Bay was equally impressive in the circle allowing only four hits while striking out nine and allowing USA’s Crystl Bustos (Canyon Country, Calif.) hitless for the first time in the tournament.

Watley led the way offensively going 2-for-3 with an RBI while Stacey Nuveman (LaVerne, Calif.) and Jessica Mendoza (Camarillo, Calif.) each added a hit for the U.S.

Despite being held hitless in the final game, Bustos was named as the tournament MVP, while Southern captured the Most Outstanding Pitcher Award.

“Bustos was phenomenal this entire tournament and could probably run for mayor of this city and win right now. The fans here fell in love with her and the way she performed this week,” Candrea said.

"This is a nice way to finish the year but now it's time to get back to work and begin preparations for World Championships in 2006."

About ASA

The Amateur Softball Association, founded in 1933, is the National Governing Body of softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. The ASA has become one of the nation’s largest sports organizations and now sanctions competition in every state through a network of 88 local associations. The ASA has grown from a few hundred teams in the early days to over 240,000 teams today, representing a membership of more than three million. For more information on the ASA, visit www.asasoftball.com.

About USA Softball

USA Softball is the brand created, operated and owned by the ASA that links the USA Men’s, Women’s, Junior Boys’ and Junior Girls’ National Team programs together. USA Softball is responsible for training, equipping and promoting these four National Teams to compete in international and domestic competitions. The USA Softball Women’s National Team is one of the only two women’s sports involved in the Olympic movement to capture three consecutive gold medals at the Olympic Games since 1996. The U.S. women have also won seven World Championship titles including the last five consecutive. For more information about USA Softball, please visit www.usasoftball.com

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