Henderson, Nev., exploded for a 14-0 lead Wednesday and coasted to the finish line, blasting Davenport, Iowa, 14-6 at the Little League Baseball World Series in South Williamsport, Pa.
Leading 5-0 going into the sixth, Nevada (3-0) tacked on nine more runs in the frame, keyed by RBI singles from Hudson Cowley, Michael Kleiner and Maddox Bryan and a three-run double by Michael Guerrero. Guerrero had two hits and four RBIs on the day, leading Nevada into Saturday’s U.S. championship game.
Iowa (2-1) starting pitcher Cooper Thissen held the Nevada offense at bay, keeping the opposition off the scoreboard over his 3 2/3 innings while notching 10 strikeouts.
His exit immediately resulted in runs, as Brooks McFarland plated two with a double to left, Jace Ward added an RBI single and then Ward scored on a wild pitch for a 4-0 lead.
Curacao 12, Nicaragua 3
Willemstad, Curacao erupted for a 10-run second inning and blasted Leon, Nicaragua.
A fielding error opened the scoring floodgates, which Curacao (3-0) extended with RBI singles from Jaymiel Antonia, Juriensly De Windt, Zha-djir Janga and Raymiel Antonia sandwiching an RBI double from Ruendrikson Leuteria.
Jaymiell Martina started and struck out seven in 2 1/3 scoreless innings for Curacao, which advanced to the international championship game with the win.
Nicaragua (3-1) got two hits from Jonathan Urroz Chavez, including a double to lead off the bottom of the first.
Japan 7, Canada 3
Taiga Yumitori hit a three-run home run and Tokyo, Japan scored all its runs over a two-inning stretch to eliminate Vancouver, Canada.
With the game scoreless in the second, Sou Koyama knocked in two runs with a double to left. Ryunosuke Maeda followed with an RBI single, and Takeru Yorozu brought home another runner with his single later in the inning.
That set the stage for Yumitori’s blast in the third inning, giving Japan (4-1) a 7-0 advantage.
Canada (3-2) chipped away with a run in the fourth and two more in the fifth, but its season ended with a 1-2-3 sixth.
Ohio 11, Alabama 2
Bryson Williams went 3-for-4 and threw four innings of one-run ball as Hamilton, Ohio, beat Phenix City, Ala., to stay alive in the U.S. lower bracket.
Ohio (4-1) moves on to face Davenport, Iowa, on Thursday, with the winner of that contest advancing to face Henderson, Nev., in the U.S. final.
Jack McAdams had two hits and two RBIs for Ohio, while Leo Feltner added two hits, two runs and the RBI. Williams took over at pitcher in the third inning and permitted four hits and no walks while striking out four.
Ryker Rasmus doubled twice and scored a run for Alabama (3-2), which was eliminated.
–Field Level Media
