Odamura eager for Canada softball win

By STEVE RIVERA

Gannett News Service

HELLINIKO, Greece - Kristy Odamura is the cornerstone of Team Canada's softball team at the 2004 Athens Games.

``She's a quiet leader,'' Canada coach Mike Renney said. ``She's an athlete who leads by example and you never question her work ethic.''

Her next mission: get her team going in the right direction after two consecutive losses.

After opening their softball schedule with a 2-0 win over Chinese Taipei on Saturday, things went south for the Canadians, losing 4-2 to China on Monday. It comes on the heels of a late Sunday night 2-0 loss to host Greece, a team that picked up its first international victory with it.

``Any loss is tough but we're look ahead to the next team and see what we do,'' said Odamura, a University of Hawaii-Hilo product and Canada's team captain.

Odamura went 0 for 3 against China. Canada, 1-2, had a 2-0 lead going into the sixth inning then gave up four runs. China was aided by two errors, one a dropped fly ball that Angela Lichty couldn't bring in.

``Defense is supposed to be our strong point but it wasn't today,'' Odamura said. ``The wind was blowing around, but it's part of the game. We practice those things.''

Next up comes Japan on Tuesday and then Team USA on Wednesday.

Odamura, who has gone 2 for 9 in three games, remains pragmatic of her team's chances.

``We know every game starts zero-zero,'' she said.

This is Odamura's second trip to the Olympics. ``It's been great and I love this team,'' she said. ``We have a bunch of girls who are great. We're just looking to improve on everything we do every day.''