By MIKE ULMER -- Toronto Sun
  SYDNEY -- It is, Canada's softball team feels, a no-lose situation.

 The Canadians, underdogs in an eight-nation field, face a powerful American side tonight (7:30 p.m. EDT) in the Olympic softball opener for both countries.

 The Americans are the reigning Pan Am and Olympic champs, a fact that does not deter Canadian pitcher Sandy Newsham of Winnipeg.

 "We're looking at this game as something other than a must-win," she said. "No one has done really well against the American team recently and it's a good chance to measure ourselves against them without too much pressure on the line. We don't necessarily need to win this game to make the medal round."

 The Americans play as a team in a U.S. professional men's league. Canada's softballers are reunited at international events but mostly hone their skills in women's leagues. That disparity provides a profound advantage to the Americans but the Canadians can be buoyed by a 1-0 loss to the U.S. in the final of the Pan Ams.

 "The thing about the Americans is that they pitch very well," said Newsham, who notched a no-hitter of her own at the Pan Ams. "Often, you only get two or three hits so what we need is one lucky swing and have somebody hit the ball out of the park."

 Offensively, the Canadian team is expected to be led by Torontonians Denise Carriere and Colleen Smith as well as Vancouver's Erin Woods.

 Canada plays New Zealand early Monday (2:30 a.m. EDT) in its second preliminary-round game. The eight teams are grouped together for the round-robin, with the top four going to the medal round.

 The U.S., Australia, Japan and China are favoured to advance.