Ireland recovered from their opening day defeat to beat Lithuania 8-7 in their second group match at the European Baseball Championships in Sweden this afternoon. Needing a win to maintain their interest in the tournament, the Mick Manning managed side stormed to a 7-0 lead thanks to the pitching of Brian morris before the Baltic state fought back to 7-6 to set up a tense finale. However, both sides scored a run each in the final inning to give Ireland a confidence boosting 8-7 victory ahead of their final match against Finland tomorrow.
Victory in that match could see them progress to a semi-final meeting with favourites and hosts Sweden on Friday, with the final to be played on Saturday afternoon. Ireland, co-captained by John Dillon and Sean Mitchell, lost their opening group match to Austria, 8-4. This is Ireland's fourth appearance at the finals since their debut in England in 1996.
Filed by Shane Murray
