Game summaries of the 42nd Junior League Baseball World Series at Heritage Park in Taylor:
Nicaragua 4, Australia 0
Nicaraguan pitcher Juan Mena struck out 16 batters – breaking a 33-year-old record – to lead the Latin American champions to a 4-0 victory over Australia. The record 16 strikeouts came in the bottom of the seventh inning on Mena’s 95th pitch of the game – the most in a game.
The previous record of 15 strikeouts was set in 1991 by David Orndorff of East Shippensburg, Pennsylvania. Nicaragua also set a new team record with 17 strikeouts when Hanley Castro got a strikeout in relief of Mena. The pitchers combined for two hits and three walks. Australia fell to 0-2 and was eliminated from the international pool with its second loss.
Florida 5, Hawaii 1
The USA Southeast champions from Tampa, Florida, advanced in the Junior League World Series with a 5-1 victory over the West champions from Honolulu, Hawaii. The Keystone Little League team broke a 1-1 tie with three runs in the sixth inning thanks to an RBI double from Cole Shearer and a two-run home run from Greyson Brandt. The win was the second for the Florida State champions (2-1). The last was the second for the Honolulu Little League in the modified double-elimination format.
Hawaii’s Peyton Shomokawa and Brennan Tomas each scored 2-2 as their team defeated Florida 12-9. Brandt and Noah Caraway each scored twice for Florida.
Mexico 1, Spain 0
Mexico won the 2024 Junior League World Series for the first time, keeping hopes alive in the InternationalPool. Matamoros, Tamaulipas, defeated Europe-Africa Regional champion Barcelona, Spain, 1-0. In a pitcher’s duel, Mexican David Zarate and Spaniard Alberto Morillo went the distance. Zararte allowed two hits, managed two walks and struck out seven. Morillo pitched a four-hitter and struck out four. Mexico got the only run it needed in the first inning when Marcos Lara and Miguel Padilla hit singles and Padilla scored on a field error after one out. Spain rallied twice in the fifth inning to load the bases but was able to score. Mexico advanced. Spain (0-2) – playing in the JLWS for the first time – was eliminated from the contest.
Pennsylvania 8, Illinois 4
U.S. Central Region champions DuBois, Pa., never trailed in a must-win game, winning 8-4 against the Central Region champions from Elmhurst/River Forest, Ill. DuBois led 2-1 in the second inning, 4-1 in the third and 5-2 after the fourth. Pennsylvania scored three more runs in the sixth to secure its first win of the tournament. For Illinois, it was its second loss in the modified double-elimination tournament that knocked the Central champions out of contention. It wasn’t all bad for Illinois. Each team had nine hits. Illinois’ Carson Krischke batted 3-for-3 and scored a run. Fran Madden batted 2-for-3 and scored two runs. For the East champions, Jackson McCall hit a double and scored two runs. Seven other players hit safely.
Nicaragua 3, Mexico 0
Playing small ball, Latin American champion Rivas of Nicaragua advanced to Friday’s World Series games with a 3-0 victory over Mexican champions Matamoros, Tamaulipas. In its first-ever appearance in the JLWS, Nicaragua improved its record to 3-1 and won another game in the tournament. Each team had just four hits. Nicaraguan pitchers Leonardo Quiroz, Hanley Castro and Envel Gonzalez combined to pitch the shutout and strike out seven players. Alexander Mejia had two hits, half his team’s total. Miguel Padilla and Ivan Cuesta pitched for Mexico, which finished its tournament run 1-2.
Florida 6, Pennsylvania 4
U.S. Southeast champion Tampa, Florida, stayed in the Junior League Baseball World Series with a 6-4 victory over East champion DuBois, Pennsylvania. Trailing 4-1 after two innings, Florida scored four runs in the fourth and another in the fifth to win for the third time in four World Series games. Tampa outscored DuBois (11-6), with Greyson Brandt, Chanse Goode, Gavin McCaffrey and Lee Melamut each having two hits. Melamut had two doubles. Gavin McCaffrey and Kaleb Unarte shared pitching duties for the Keystone Little League winners. London Duncan batted 2 for 3 and scored a run for the East champions, who finished their World Series 1-2.
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