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The United States softball team blew it. It needed to tank a game in pool play just to show the rest of the world and the International Olympic Committee that the United States can be beat.
Instead, the team mercy-ruled nearly every one of its oppponents. The only game that went the distance was a 8-1 win over Canada in its second game. At least the United States trailed 1-0 in that game and kept it close until the sixth inning. The U.S. scored all eight runs in the final two innings of the game.
The rest of the games have been five-inning mercy rules, shutouts and no-hitters that only solidify the argument that the United States is too good at softball and the rest of the world has no chance of competing.
Unfortunately, Canyon Country's Crystl Bustos and Camarillo's Jessica Mendoza share some of the blame.
The United States set an Olympic record with 12 home runs. The medal rounds haven't even started yet. Bustos and Mendoza have eight of those 12 home runs. They each homered in an 8-0 win over the Netherlands. One of the bright spots in the record-breaking home run performance is that the United States broke a record shared by Australia and Japan. Until today, that was one Olympic softball record the United States didn't have.
Monica Abbott was credited with a perfect game against the Netherlands which ended after five innings. It was the first perfect game by a United States pitcher in the Olympics. If ever there was a bad time to throw a perfect game, this was it. Perhaps the only time that might be worse is in the gold medal game.
"I am really excited," Abbott said after the game against the Netherlands. "I kind of had a goal to come out and throw one when I was named to the team. I was glad I was able to go out and make some good pitches work and I had some great plays made today by the defense with Lovie (Jung), Tairia (Flowers) and obviously Bergy's (Laura Berg) catch in right field. You can't really ask for much more than that and I was just trying to take it one pitch at a time and stay focused for each one."
The United States (6-0) has one more chance to make it look like it is not the behemoth of the Olympics. The U.S. plays China next, the last round robin game before playoffs begin on Wednesday. What better way to show the world that the U.S. is vulnerable than by losing to the host country.
The least the United States can do is make sure it goes the full seven. Keep it close and maybe softball has a chance to be an Olympic sport again.

Canyon Country's Crystl Bustos and Camarillo's Jessica Mendoza were part of an record-setting home run display in a 7-0 win over Japan.
The United States set an Olympic record with four home runs in a five inning game against Japan.
Mendoza hit a pair of two-run homers The first came in the first inning and the second was in the fourth. Bustos followed Mendoza with a solo home run in the fourth inning. Bustos has hit a home run in four of her past five Olympic games, dating back to the 2004 gold medal game in Athens.
Natasha Watley of Irvine hit a solo home run in the first inning.
The United States returned to the field hours later to finish a suspended game against Canada. The United State scored five runs in the seventh inning and won 8-1.

Canyon Country's Crystl Bustos, a Canyon High graduate, hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning in a 3-0 win over Australia.
It was the third straight Olympic game that Bustos has homered. She homered in the opening game in Beijing against Venezuela and in the gold medal game of the 2004 Olympics.
Her home run against Australia scored Camarillo's Jessica Mendoza, who drew a walk.
Natasha Watley of Irvine had a run-scoring single in the fifth inning to break a scoreless tie.
"Today was a lot of fun. Obviously I was pleased with my at bat. These are the situations you dream about and why you play the game," Watley said of her RBI single. "You dream about being able to come through for your team and it's nice when you do especially at a stage like this."
The U.S. improved to 2-0 in the Olympics and have a 16-game Olympic winning streak. Australia is 0-2 in the Olympics, losing to Japan in its opening game.

Jenny Finch and Monica Abbott combined on an 11-0, five-inning, no-hitter over Venelzuela in the Olympic softball opener for the United States.
Crystl Bustos of Canyon Country and a Canyon High graduate homered for the United States, a solo shot in the third inning.
Natasha Watley hit a two-run home run and Caitlin Lowe hit an in-the-park home run in the second inning.
Next up for the U.S. is Australia on Wednesday.

Jessica Mendoza from Camarillo leads the USA Softball Women's National team in hitting, home runs and RBIs on the Bound 4 Beijing Tour.
She has a .469 batting average, 15 home runs and 77 RBIs in 48 games. Team USA is 47-1 on its tour across the country in preparation for the Beijing Olympics.
In the team's most recent game, USA defeated a team of collegiate all-stars 19-0 at the Belleville Softball Complex in Indiana. The collegiate all-stars had players from Notre Dame, Illinois, Northwestern, Indiana, Southern Illinois, and Eastern Michigan.
Crystl Bustos, a Canyon High of Canyon Country graduate, drove in a pair of runs for USA against the collegiate all-stars.
The next game for the USA is today in Midland, Mich.