Little League World Series Day 8: Illinois advances; Pennsylvania, Mo'ne Davis ousted
Illinois 6, Pennsylvania 5
Illinois managed to quash a late comeback attempt on Thursday, stranding the tying run at third base in the game's final inning to eke out a 6-5 victory over Pennsylvania and advance to the United States championship game of the 2014 Little League World Series.
Illinois surged to an early 6-2 lead after two innings, taking advantage of a shaky Pennsylvania defense that committed three errors in Thursday night's elimination game.
Pennsylvania responded in the fourth inning, though, as Zion Spearman trimmed his team's deficit to 6-4 with a two-run single before Kai Cummings cranked a solo shot one inning later to bring his team within one run.
Though Pennsylvania managed to get the tying run to third base in the bottom of the sixth inning, reliever Cameron Bufford managed to stifle the late rally and secure his team a spot in the United States championship game.
Mo'ne Davis did not figure prominently in her team's defeat, flying out to right field in her lone plate appearance.
Japan 12, Mexico 1
Suguru Kanamori fueled his team's prolific offense with a pair of home runs while Ren Takeuchi allowed just one hit over 3 2/3 impressive innings as Japan trounced Mexico 12-1 on Thursday to advance to the Little League World Series International Championship game.
Beset by an early 1-0 deficit, Japan wasted no time asserting themselves offensively as the reigning champions plated two first-inning runs on a pair of solo shots courtesy of shortstop Hayato Ueshima and Kanamori.
Japan added another run in the second inning before exploding for three more in each of the next two frames, an onslaught that afforded them a 9-1 lead. With two runners on in the bottom of the fifth, Kanamori extended his club's lead to 12-1 and cemented a crucial victory with his second homer of the afternoon.
Juan Garza accounted for Mexico's lone hit and run Thursday with a first-inning solo shot that sailed beyond the fence in center field.