Berg, U.S.A. Take Silver in Tokyo

CORVALLIS – Oregon State head softball coach Laura Berg earned her fifth Olympic medal on Tuesday, as USA softball took silver in Tokyo.
 
Berg, who won her previous four medals as a player (three gold, one silver), is part of the coaching staff for the American squad, which went a perfect 5-0 in the group phase before falling to Japan 2-0 in the gold medal game on Tuesday.
 
The 2020 Olympics (which are taking place in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic) marked the return of softball to the Games for the first time since 2008.
 
Berg has been involved with USA Softball as both an athlete and a coach. As an athlete, Berg cemented herself as one of the game's greatest outfielders, helping the Red, White and Blue to three Olympic Gold Medals in 1996, 2000 and 2004, as well as an Olympic Silver Medal in 2008. Berg joined the WNT coaching staff in 2012 and served as an assistant before being named the head coach for the Junior WNT in 2017 that earned Gold at the World Baseball Softball Confederation Junior Women's World Championship.
 
She was joined in Tokyo by Oregon State signee Tarni Stepto, who was part of the Australian squad. Stepto pitched one of the best games of the tournament on Sunday, holding the USA scoreless through the first seven innings, before surrendering just one earned run in 7.1 innings of work.
 
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