For the second straight season, the Little League World Series ended in a walk-off victory for the United States as Lake Mary, Florida outlasted Chinese Taipei to win the state's first-ever title.
But there was no deja vu for the uniquely chaotic finish that unfolded in central Pennsylvania on Sunday, as the Southeast Region champions were handled youth baseball glory from a baffling, devastating throwing error by Chinese Taipei.
A dramatic 1-1 game blew through regulation and into the bottom of the eighth inning, where recently adopted Little League rules allow each team to begin their frame with a runner on second base. Lake Mary opted for a conservative approach with no outs, instructing Hunter Alexander to lay a sacrifice bunt down the first-base line to advance the runner.
READ MORE: Which sports will be added to Los Angeles 2028 as Olympics gets Hollywood treatment
READ MORE: San Francisco Giants marquee signing Blake Snell makes history after rough start to season
However, both Chinese Taipei's pitcher and first basemen went for the bunt, causing relief arm Chiu Wei-Che to field the sacrifice and fire his throw toward a vacant base. The ball flew disastrously into the outfield, Lake Mary's third base coach whirled his arm around in celebratory consult and the central Floridians became Little League World Series champions 2-1.
"It was the greatest feeling ever," said Lathan Norton, who scored the winning run on Sunday. "I still haven't had time to let it all sink in, but it feels like the most amazing thing ever."
Alexander added: "I was just thinking, 'Stay fair, stay fair.' After that ball goes past me, I say, 'Let's go!'"
The Floridians looked set to become the victims of stinging misfortune themselves as the entered the sixth inning with a 1-0 deficit despite placing 12 runners on base. Lake Mary was forced down to his final out by a controversial decision from the first-base umpire as well, ruling that Garrett Rohozen went around for strike three despite his bat not crossing over home plate.
However, Little League World Series Home Run Derby champion Landon Bono earned a walk to keep the Southeast region alive and advance a runner into scoring position. And after building a 2-0 count, DJ Mieses deposited a fastball into left-center field that brought home the tying run.
The dramatic ending was a foregone conclusion for Florida coach Jonothan Anderson, who delivered a moving speech to his team before its sixth-inning rally. "One of the first days that we got here, I came down here. A man prayed over me, he saw my dad and said 'It's already been written,'" Anderson said to his team, as captured by ESPN's All-Access broadcast.
"We're already the champs, the Lord put it in his book. We're just going to finish the story, right here right now. Stay calm, stay composed, stay within yourself, but understand that it's already been written, it's already ours, we just have to finish it."
While the Americans managed to triumph in the championship game, the global field exacted some revenge in the third-place game as Texas fell to Venezuela.
Local News
