Erin Coffel Leads Team USA to Softball World Cup Gold

LIMA, Peru – University of Kentucky sophomore slugger Erin Coffel picked up a gold medal Sunday evening, as she helped lead Team USA to the 2021 World Baseball Softball Confederation U-18 World Cup gold medal with a 1-0 win over Taiwan.
 
Coffel through the tournament hit .478 and slugged .870 as the United States went 8-0 in round robin play before winning the knockout round to take home the gold medal over Taiwan.
 
Her .478 average was the best of any American in the tournament and was the second-best average of anyone from any country during the World Cup. She led the World Cup with nine runs scored, and had the highest slugging percentage, at .870 of any team competing. Her two homers led the world and her seven RBI were third in the final rankings for all countries.
 
Throughout the tournament, the Bremen, Indiana native had 11 hits in her 23 at bats with nine runs scored, and four extra-base hits. Coffel had a double, triple and a pair of home runs as she drove in seven to lift the United States to victory.
 
Coffel had a hit in all but one game of the tournament, logging three multi-hit games for the Red, White and Blue in addition to hitting a home run in back-to-back contests against the Netherlands and Peru.
 
She was additionally named to the All-World U-18 Softball Team as the best third baseman in the tournament, one of five Americans to make the final all-tournament team.
 
Coffel returns to Kentucky in 2022 for her sophomore campaign kicking off in Mid-February. The 2022 Kentucky Softball schedule will be released shortly.
 
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