The world-ranked No. 1 U.S. Women’s National Team (WNT) kicked off the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) World Cup Finals on Monday with a 5-2 victory over Canada in Castions Di Strada, Italy.

The Game 1 victory was highlighted by timely hitting from the Eagles offense in a tense comeback matchup.

The pitching staff of Ally Carda and Kelly Maxwell demonstrated strong control in the circle, with Carda setting the tone through the first three innings and Maxwell finishing with four solid innings to secure the win for Team USA.

The pair combined for nine strikeouts on the day while only allowing three hits.

Canada took an early 1-0 lead with a walk and a double in the top of the first before adding another run in the third to make it 2-0.

The Eagles responded in the bottom of the fourth, scoring their first run of the game after a walk to Amanda Lorenz and a single from Jocelyn Alo put runners in place for Jessie Warren to force a fielder’s choice that plated Lorenz — narrowing the Canadian lead, 2-1.

Haylie McCleney and Hannah Flippen kept the bats going in the bottom of the 5^th with a pair of singles that evened the score, 2-2.

The Eagles surged ahead in the bottom of the sixth with a two-run double from Maya Brady and a sacrifice fly from Haylie McCleney that put the U.S. ahead, 5-2.

Maxwell held steady in the circle, retiring four batters in the top of the seventh to pick up the save and clinch the win for the Eagles.

Here are highlights of the Game 1 win for Team USA (video courtesy of WBSC):

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Boxscore

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Team USA Schedule

The Red, White and Blue returns to action today (Tuesday, July 16) at 8:30 p.m. CET (1:30 p.m. CT) against No. 6 Italy followed by a matchup against China on tomorrow, July 17, at 2 p.m. CET (7 a.m. CT) to close out Opening Round.

The top four teams will advance to the Super Round (July 18-19) for a chance to compete in the Medal Round slated for July 20.

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How to Watch the WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup Finals

The WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup Finals are being streamed via GameTime. Fans have the option of two different services: Tournament Pass ($12.99) or Daily Pass ($7.99). Tournament Pass subscribers will have full access to all 22 games of the WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup Finals. For more information on subscriptions, click here. Fans will also have the opportunity to follow along via live stats by following the U.S. Women’s National Team on Gamechanger.

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Team USA Roster

COACHES