Day three at the European Championship in Hoofddorp on Sunday saw Spain and the Czech Republic scoring a half dozen runs in wins over Croatia and Sweden in the morning. In the afternoon the Netherlands prevailed 3-1 over Russia, while Germany edged out Great Britain 3-2 and France came back against Greece 7-1. In the evening Italy blew by Belgium 15-0.

Monday will provide more decisions in regards of the composition of the Super Round Robin. The Netherlands, Czech Republic, Spain and Italy already qualified for the Final Round. They improved to 3-0 each. Germany and France can follow with wins over Russia and Belgium. Meanwhile also first place in both groups will be on the line, as the Dutch meet the Czech Republic and Italy takes on Spain. Also Greece squares off against Croatia and Great Britain faces Sweden.

Player of the Day:

Frederic Hanvi (France). With Greece leading 1-0 Hanvi led off the fourth inning with a single, moved up on a sac bunt and then stole third. The third baseman muffed the throw from the catcher and Hanvi raced home to tie the game. One inning later Hanvi cleared the bases with a double and score moments later to make it a 5-1 ball game en route to the win.

Stat of the Day:

18 fly outs. The Netherlands had to sweat it out against Russia, winning only by a score of 3-1. Nikolay Markov caused troubles for the Dutch hitters, forcing them into a whopping 18 fly outs of the 21 outs he was on the mound.

No surprises:

So far upsets are missing in the European Championship. 18 games are played and the favorite on paper has won on each occasion. However after five of the six games on day one ended early due to mercy rule, only two games have suffered this fate since then.

Fact of the Day:

The Netherlands and Italy have met in the finals of the European Championship 25 times, 16 times the Dutch team won, nine times Italy.

Results Day 3:

Group A:

Czech Republic – Sweden 6-1



Sweden 000 000 010 1 7 3 Czech Republic 401 000 10X 6 11 1

Box score

The Czech Republic remains undefeated in the 2016 European Championship in Hoofddorp after three days of first-round action. On Sunday morning they scored four runs in the first en route to a 6-1 win over Sweden. A strong pitching performance followed to secure the victory. Sweden dropped to 1-2. Full recap.

Germany – Great Britain 3-2



Great Britain 002 000 000 2 8 5 Germany 100 010 10X 3 9 1

Box score

Germany beat Great Britain 3-2 in a tight ball game on Sunday afternoon in Group A at the European Championship. Team GB took a 2-1 lead in the third. However Germany came back. In the fifth they tied the contest at 2-2 and then plated the game-winner in the seventh. Full recap.

Netherlands – Russia 3-1



Russia 000 000 100 1 4 1 Netherlands 020 000 01X 3 7 3

Box score

The Netherlands edged out Russia 3-1 in front of an official attendance of 2,950 at ETO Ballpark in Hoofddorp in a Group A matchup at the European Championship on Sunday afternoon. A pair of home runs made the difference, as the Dutch team improved to 3-0, while Russia dropped to 0-3. Full recap.

Group B:

Spain – Croatia 6-0



Croatia 000 000 000 0 5 1 Spain 010 320 00X 6 8 2

Box score

Spain shut out Croatia 6-0 on Sunday morning to remain undefeated in the European Championship in Hoofddorp. It was their third win in as many games. Croatia dropped to 0-3. A run in the second gave Spain the lead, five more in the fourth and fifth blew the score open. Full recap.

France – Greece 7-1



Greece 010 000 000 1 3 4 France 000 141 10X 7 11 2

Box score

France overcame an early 0-1 deficit to beat Greece 7-1 in the afternoon game on Sunday at Nieuw Vennep at the European Championship. They tied the game in the fourth and got ahead by four runs in the fifth en route to their second win in three tournament games. Greece remains winless. Full recap.

Italy – Belgium 15-0



Belgium 000 00 0 4 1 Italy 132 18 15 13 0

Box score

Italy celebrated a 15-0 shutout over Belgium in the evening game on Sunday at the European Championship in Hoofddorp. In a Group B matchup they scored in each of the five innings played and ended the contest early due to 15-run rule with an eight-run rally in the fifth. Full recap.

Standings:

Schedule:

Complete results, box scores, schedule, statistics and live play by play is available through www.baseballstats.eu

Live radio from two games each day is available through www.meinsportradio.de

Tickets are available on the official website www.ekhonkbal2016.nl

Photo by Gregor Eisenhuth