U.S. Moves Closer to Medal Round; Canadians Eliminated from Medal Chase

The United States moved closer to the medal round with a 9-1 victory over China Monday evening, while the Canadian team fell out of medal contention with a 1-0 loss to Korea.

Team USA, which is now 3-2 in the Olympics, will play Chinese Taipei (1-4) Tuesday morning at 6 a.m. (central) and can clinch a berth in the semifinals with a victory. Highlights of the game against Chinese Taipei will be shown during MSNBC’s coverage on Tuesday between 11:30 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Former Husker Brian Duensing, who has not allowed a run in two Olympic appearances and earned the win against Canada with 3.1 innings of shutout relief, did not throw for Team USA on Monday.

The Canadians (1-4) suffered their fourth one-run loss of the 2008 Olympics and were held to just two hits, while Atsunori Inaba’s fifth-inning solo homer provided all the scoring. Former Husker Adam Stern went hitless in three at-bats, as Canada lost its second 1-0 setback in the tournament. The Canadians look to rebound tonight against the Netherlands, with first pitch slated for 9:30 p.m. (central).

As a reminder, fans can watch all of the Olympic action live on NBCOlympics.com, as every game is being video-streamed on the site.