TREBIC, Czech Republic – The 2014 Under-21 European Championship opened up on Tuesday, bringing together six European National Teams, including Austria, Czech Republic, Lithuania, Russia, Slovakia and the Ukraine.
World No. 27 Czech Republic is the highest ranked country — ranked No. 7 in Europe — and remains undefeated at 2-0 after two days of competition.
Video of all the matches are being streamed online.
In possibly the highlight of the event so far, Russia and Ukraine met on Wednesday, which peaked local media interest due to surrouding issues between the two countries.
In the contest, there was no score until the bottom of the eighth, when Ukraine struck for 2 runs with a single down the right field line.
Russia struck back with two runs on two hits in the top of the ninth to tie the game at 2-2.
In the bottom of the 9th, Ukraine managed to load the bases with one out, when a sacrifice fly to centerfield was executed, bringing home the winning run.
The two teams shook hands after the match — customary especially among baseball competitions — to demonstrate friendship, mutual respect and sportsmanship.
The U-21 championship continues today, with the gold medal final scheduled for 14:00 CET on Sunday, 27-July.
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For the complete U-21 European Championship schedule, live updates, scores and standings, click here.
For all baseball activity in Europe, visit the Confederation of European Baseball (CEB) website.
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