Cuba upends Czech Republic’s strong start to win on Thursday at Volunteer

A closer look at Cuba's win 4-2 win over Czech on Thursday at Volunteer Stadium.

PLAY OF THE GAME -- Marloon Herrera's two-RBI hit: With two outs, a one-run deficit and one runner on base in the fifth inning, Cuba left fielder Marloon Herrera took the spark of momentum first baseman Leonardo Junco ignited with his preceding double and ran with it. Facing a 2-2 count against a stout pitcher, Herrera found the pitch he was looking for and sent it into left field, batting in Brayan Perez and Junco to give his team the lead.

CUBA PLAYER OF THE GAME -- Pitcher Deivy Hernandez: After allowing a run to start, Cuba starting pitcher Deivy Hernandez got it together to say the least. He allowed a hit and two walks there but through the next three innings, he allowed just one of each -- posting three scoreless innings and finishing his performance with six strikeouts.

CZECH REPUBLIC PLAYER OF THE GAME -- Pitcher Ilia Kolomoiets: In his return to Volunteer Stadium, Czech Republic starting pitcher Ilia Kolomoiets showed how much he had improved, striking out the most batters in Czech Republic's history at the series with ten and posting four straight scoreless innings to start. And whenever the team lost the lead, he provided the team with a brief spark, getting into scoring position after attributing the team's second hit.

BIG INNING--Cuba's fifth inning: After Cuba took the lead in the fifth, Czech Republic put the tying run on base without attributing an out. But instead of panicking, Cuba closer retired the side from there with back-to-back strikeouts and a groundout. In maintaining its momentum and keeping its opponent's at-bay, it would add two runs to its lead in the ensuing half.

BEST EFFORT -- Brett Cabrera's defensive stop: As the game approached its midpoint, Czech Republic still held the momentum but it was starting to wane. It got a chance to turn that trend, with Marek Svehla putting a ball in a great spot to kick off the third inning -- a grounder down the left field line that was looking fair. But third baseman Brett Cabrera reached just managed to halt the ball, stretching out as far as he could to keep it out of the outfield. Then, he was able to set up for a throw and make it just before Svenla made it to first.

FLASHING LEATHER -- Even with Cuba finding its offensive flow late, this was certainly a fun time for those that love sound defensive play. The teams combined for nine scoreless innings on the day, with Cuba posting five and a row and allowing just one hit after the first inning. Pitching didn't necessarily take centerstage either, with both infields showing off how much they had prepared, making tough groundouts look routine.

WHAT THE ADULTS SAY--"We have to stay concentrated the whole game because we were concentrated for four innings and it was just wasted," said Czech Republic manager Pavel Jozek. "We played a great four innings against Cuban region. We were winning all of them and it's a shame."

"In any tournament, first win is always a big win and there's a lot of pressure in that first game," said Cuba manager Everaldo Machado. "They handled that pressure and that could make the team more confident for the rest of the games during the tournament."

WHAT THE KIDS SAY -- "It was a very emotional moment for me because I felt like we could win," said Cuba first baseman Leonardo Junco on scoring the run that gave his team the 2-1 lead.

WHAT IT MEANS-- With the win, Cuba is set to face the winner of Friday's matchup between Australia and Chinese Taipei at 5 p.m. on Monday at Volunteer Stadium. Czech Republic looks to bounce back in consolations, where it will face Aruba at 5 p.m. on Saturday at Volunteer Stadium.