It was Lake Mary Little League 's summer in 2024.
The Little League team from Florida won the state's first-ever Little League World Series Championship on Sunday, defeating Chinese Taipei 2-1 in eight innings. It never led in the game but secured the win on a game-winning bunt by Hunter Alexander.
Alexander's bunt was fielded cleanly by Chinese Taipei, but Chinese Taipei had no one at first base for the throw, which sailed into the outfield to allow the runner on second base to score.
Both teams were dominant on the mound, as Chinese Taipei scored in the first inning but was held in check by starter Jacob Bibaud and reliever Lathan Norton the rest of the game. Florida trailed 1-0 with only three outs remaining, but first baseman DeMarcos Mieses was able to tie the game on a bloop single to left field.
Follow along here for the updates from the game:
Watch Lake Mary in the 2024 LLWS live on Fubo (free trial)
6:25 p.m.: Florida does it! Florida starts with a runner on second base, who's able to score on the bunt. Chinese Taipei fields the bunt cleanly, but no one was covering first base, with the throw heading into the outfield. Florida wins the LLWS Championship for the first time ever.
6:22 p.m.: Norton continues to shove in relief, shutting down Chinese Taipei once again. Florida with another walk off chance in the eighth inning.
6:17 p.m.: Norton's fastball continues to retire Chinese Taipei's hitters, as he gets another strikeout.
6:13 p.m.: Florida strikes out to end the inning. It misses a chance and is going to need to go get three more outs.
6:10 p.m.: Florida ropes a double to left field, but it holds up the runner at third base. He might've had a chance to score the winning run.
6:09 p.m.: Another Florida strike out marks the second out of the inning. Both teams are just dominant on the mound today.
6:08 p.m.: Florida starts the inning with a strikeout, but gets a one-out baserunner after the walk.
6:01 p.m.: Norton gets another pop up to get out of the inning. Florida a run away from a walk off victory.
6:01 p.m.: Norton forces a pop up to the catcher for the second out of the inning. Nice bounce back after the two straight hits.
5:55 p.m.: Chinese Taipei with back-to-back singles, putting runners on first and second with an out.
5:53 p.m.: Norton continues to light it up on the mound, striking out another batter. His fastball has been hard to catch up to for Chinese Taipei.
5:48 p.m.: Florida can't score the game-winning run, but does force extra innings. Free baseball!
5:46 p.m.: Tie. Game. DeMarcos Mieses hits a blooper to left field to score Anderson from second base. Bono reaches third base, giving Florida a shot at a win with a single here.
5:44 p.m.: Florida's 4-hole hitter Landon Bono walks, putting runners on first and second with two outs.
5:42 p.m.: Rohozen strikes out, although he appeared to hold back. The first-base umpire ruled he swung, and the play isn't reviewable. Two outs now for Florida.
5:41 p.m.: Florida ropes a ball to deep center field, but Chinese Taipei makes a great catch in center field for the first out of the inning. Tough break.
5:37 p.m.: Perfect start for Florida, as leadoff hitter Chase Anderson gets hit by a pitch in a 3-1 count. Tying run is now on base.
5:31 p.m.: Norton strikes out a batter to end the inning. Florida down to its final three outs with a chance to tie or win.
5:30 p.m.: Both of these have pitched so well. Norton with two quick outs to start the sixth inning.
5:24 p.m.: Chinese Taipei strikes out two Florida hitters to end the inning. Florida down to just a few more chances to tie this game up.
5:20 p.m.: Florida's second hitter of the inning reaches base on a single up the middle. He then proceeded to hit the griddy. A classic move.
5:14 p.m.: Norton gets another big pop up to end the inning. Both teams have struggled to knock in runs with runners in scoring position so far.
5:12 p.m.: Norton forces a big pop up for the second out of the inning. Chinese Taipei still has bases loaded with two outs.
5:11 p.m.: Norton walks a batter to load the bases.
5:06 p.m.: Lathan Norton is in for Bibaud, who pitched a gem good enough to win. Norton hoping to keep Florida in this one late.
5:04 p.m.: Chinese Taipei starting to get to Bibaud, as it launches a double in the left-field gap to put runners on second and third with an out. Bibaud is at 72 pitches.
4:56 p.m.: Florida lines one to right field, but it's right at Chinese Taipei's right fielder. This one is still at 1-0 headed into the fifth inning.
4:54 p.m.: Florida with a runner on third with two outs. It nearly had an inning-ended out at first base, but review showed the runner was safe before advancing to third base.
4:40 p.m.: Bibaud is dialed in right now, having retired 10 consecutive batters. Florida gets out of the inning on a web gem by the shortstop, who dives to his left and spins to beat the runner at first base.
4:33 p.m.: Florida can't capitalize, as it grounds out to end the inning. Florida has four hits to Chinese Taipei's one, but still trails.
4:32 p.m.: Florida puts on the double steal, putting runners on second and third with two outs.
4:31 p.m.: Florida with a sharp-hit ball to second base, but it's fielded cleanly and nearly turned into a double play. Florida however is safe at first base, keeping the inning alive with two outs.
4:23 p.m.: Back-to-back hits for Florida put runners on first and second with two outs. Can it finally break through with a big inning here?
4:19 p.m.: Bibaud has been impressive since the first inning, stifling Chinese Taipei's offense. He retires Taipei's hitters in order again in the third.
4:12 p.m.: Tough break for Florida, who can't score in the second inning. Chinese Taipei still leads 1-0, but Florida's offense has woke up.
4:09 p.m.: Another Florida single loads the bases with two outs. Another big moment here.
4:07 p.m.: Wow. Tough break for Florida, as it ropes a ball straight at the third baseman, who converts the double play on the force out and the throw home.
4:05 p.m.: Florida with the bases loaded and no outs. Chance to do some big damage here.
4:01 p.m.: Great start to the frame for Florida, as it gets the leadoff runner on base after an infield single.
3:57 p.m.: Bibaud settling in nicely, as he retires Chinese Taipei's hitters in order. Florida lineup looking to tie this one up now.
3:49 p.m.: Florida can't capitalize on the opportunity. Florida trails 1-0 heading into the second inning.
3:46 p.m.: Florida's first two hitters go down in order, but the 3- and the 4-hole hitters both are able to get on base with two outs.
3:34 p.m.: Florida gets out of the bases-loaded jam with a pop up to the left fielder to end the inning. Bibaud does a nice job of minimizing the damage after the two leadoff walks.
3:32 p.m.: Chinese Taipei scratches its first run of the game on a hard-hit groundball to the shortstop. Florida with two outs in the top of the first inning.
3:28 p.m.: Florida gets an out on a sacrifice bunt, but Chinese Taipei moves runners to second and third with one out.
3:26 p.m.: Chinese Taipei getting going early, with two straight walks to start the game. It has yet to swing the bat against Bibaud so far.
3:21 p.m.: Florida is the home team, and left-hander Jacob Bibaud is on the mound.
3:02 p.m.: The hill is full and the LLWS Championship Game is just about ready for first pitch.
2:20 p.m.: Florida and Chinese Taipei have made it to Lamade Stadium for the LLWS Championship Game:
- When: 3 p.m. ET Sunday, August 25
- Where: Lamade Stadium in Williamsport, Pennsylvania
- 10 a.m.: Barquisimeto, Venezuela (Latin America) vs. Boerne, Texas (Southwest) on ESPN2
- 3 p.m.: Taoyuan City, Chinese Taipei (Asia-Pacific) vs. Lake Mary, Florida (Southeast) on ABC
- August 14: Lake Mary, Florida (Southeast) beats Sioux Falls, South Dakota (Midwest) 2-1
- August 16: Lake Mary, Florida (Southeast) beats Puyallup, Washington (Northwest) 6-1
- August 19: Boerne, Texas (Southwest) beats Lake Mary, Florida (Southeast) 4-1
- August 20: Lake Mary, Florida (Southeast) beats Staten Island, New York (Metro) 6-1
- August 21: Lake Mary, Florida (Southeast) beats Wailuku, Hawaii (West) 4-3
- August 22: Lake Mary, Florida (Southeast) beats Henderson, Nevada (Mountain) 6-3
- U.S. championship: Lake Mary, Florida (Southeast) beats Boerne, Texas (Southwest) 10-7
- LLWS championship: Taoyuan City, Chinese Taipei (Asia-Pacific) vs. Lake Mary, Florida (Southeast) , 3 p.m. Sunday, August 25 on ABC
- No. 7 Chase Anderson: shortstop/second base/center field
- No. 8 Chris Chikodroff: pitcher/outfield
- No. 9 Lathan Norton: outfield/pitcher/third base
- No. 10 Hunter Alexander: second base/third base
- No. 12 Jacob Bibaud: outfield/pitcher
- No. 14 JJ Feliciano: shortstop/third base/pitcher
- No. 15 Liam Morrisey: center field/pitcher
- No. 18 Luis Calo: pitcher/outfield
- No. 19 Landon Bono: catcher/pitcher/third base
- No. 22 Garrett Rohozen: utility
- No. 25 DJ Mieses: first base
- No. 26 Teraj Alexander: first base/catcher/pitcher
Where is Lake Mary, Florida?
Lake Mary is a suburban city in Central Florida's Seminole County, about 20 miles north of Orlando.
Has Florida ever won Little League World Series?
Lake Mary is making its first trip to the Little League World Series. They are the 24th Florida team to make the trip to Williamsport, and while eight teams from the Sunshine State have been runners-up, no Florida team has won the championship .
How many innings in Little League World Series?
Little League baseball games don't go nine innings like MLB and college baseball games do. Little League games are only six innings long. If the score is tied after six, the game will still go to extra innings until there is a winner.
LLWS pitching limits: What are pitch counts in Little League World Series?
Little League International has limits on how many pitches players are allowed to throw over a period of time. For the 11- to 12-year-olds in the Little League World Series, players are limited to 85 pitches in a game.
There are also requirements for how much time a player must rest between pitching appearances. Here are the rest requirements for pitchers 14 and younger :
- 66 pitches or more in a game: 4 days' rest before next pitching appearance
- 51-65 pitches: 3 days
- 36-50 pitches: 2 days
- 21-35 pitches: 1 day
- 1-20 pitches: No rest needed
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This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida defeats Chinese Taipei in extra innings in Little League World Series 2024: Final score for title game
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