Lake Mary All-Stars to win 2024 Little League World Series
Lake Mary defeated Chinese Taipei, 2-1, in overtime at Howard J. Lamade Stadium in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, to win the championship.
ORLANDO, Fla. – We did it! The Lake Mary All-Stars made history Sunday, becoming the first Florida team to win a Little League World Series championship.
Lake Mary defeated Chinese Taipei, 2-1, in overtime at Howard J. Lamade Stadium in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, to win the championship.
Chinese Taipei, the previously unbeaten team representing the Asia-Pacific region, reached the finals on a five-game winning streak that included two shutout wins over Canada and Australia and three crushing victories over Cuba, Japan and Latin America.
Lake Mary (6-1) played a nearly perfect tournament game, although there were some close games. The All-Stars won the Midwest and Northwest regions, but suffered a setback with a loss to the Southwest region, represented by a team from Vaughan, Texas. The All-Stars bounced back from that loss and won three straight games in the Metro, Western and Mountain regions to head into a rematch with Texas, where they won 10-7 to claim the LLWS U.S. Championship.
Florida produced another thrilling game on Sunday. Lake Mary was trailing 1-0 going into the sixth inning when DJ Mises stepped up to bat and drove in the team's first run of the game to send the game into extra innings. This was the first time a Little League World Series championship game had gone into extra innings since 2007.
The game was tied at 1-1 heading into the eighth inning. In the bottom of the eighth, Lake Mary bunted to first base on the first pitch, and the pitcher picked up the ball and threw it to first base, but there was no one there, and the winning run was scored from second base.
The boys are now local heroes and will have a special parade next weekend to celebrate their victory. The City of Lake Mary praised the team's accomplishments in a statement.
“The City of Lake Mary could not be more proud of our International World Series Championship team for the dedication, passion and hard work they put into the Little League World Series. They demonstrated to the entire nation the true spirit of teamwork and perseverance. From practice to the games, they gave it their all. Their dedication on and off the field is truly inspirational, and this is just the beginning of many great things to come.”
Fans cheer on the Lake Mary All-Stars at the LLWS
Fans from around Central Florida gathered for watch parties to watch the Lake May All-Stars take on Chinese Taipei in the 2024 Little League World Series World Championship Game.
Early Sunday morning, Texas lost to Latin America, 4-3, in the LLWS third-place game.
Lake Mary competes in LLWS for the first time
The Lake Mary All-Stars left Florida on August 8th for the team's first ever appearance in the LLWS. The team qualified by going undefeated (4-0) at the Southeast Regional Tournament held in Georgia the first week of August.
Lake Mary isn't the first team from Central Florida to compete on the big stage: In 2001, the Apopka All-Stars reached the Little League World Series and ultimately won the U.S. championship, but lost to Japan in the world title game.
Lake Mary's Little League team advances to the World Series
The Lake Mary Little League All-Star team will be competing in the Little League Baseball World Series. Good luck!
The Lake Mary All-Stars are hoping to follow in Apopka's footsteps and bring home the championship trophy, and FOX 35 News spoke with former Apopka team player Justin LaFavors, who shared his insights about the high stakes tournament.
“They're going to learn how to handle pressure,” LaFavours said. “They're going to learn to fight through those problems and those things that get in their way.”
Aug. 14: Lake Mary beats Midwest Regional, 2-1.
The Lake Mary All-Stars earned their first LLWS victory, defeating Sioux Falls, South Dakota, representing the Midwest Region, 2-1, on Aug. 14. The team then faced South Hill Little League, representing the Northwest Region, from Puyallup, Washington.
Aug. 16: Lake Mary defeats Northwest Regional, 6-1.
The Lake Mary All-Stars bolstered their championship hopes with another win at the LLWS. The team started strong and quickly gained momentum, scoring a dominant 6-1 win over South Hill Little League of the Northwest Region in Puyallup, Washington.
Friendly Confins Sports Restaurant in Lake Mary was buzzing with fans gathering for a viewing party to cheer on their hometown heroes, as Lake Mary beat Sioux Falls 2-1 to improve to 2-0 in the tournament.
Owen Fouse, a former member of last year's Lake Mary Little League All-Star team, expressed surprise at the team's success.
“We've been playing here since we were 8 years old,” Fouse said. “If you would have told me we were going to the Little League World Series, I honestly wouldn't have believed it, but now it's real and they have a real chance to win.”
Lake Mary advanced through the winners tournament and was scheduled to face another Southwest Texas team on Monday that was undefeated in regional play.
Aug. 19: Lake Mary loses to Southwest Regional, 4-1.
Lake Mary's quest for a Little League World Series title was thwarted with a 4-1 loss to a Southwest Region team from Vaughan, Texas. The loss put Lake Mary in danger of elimination, but the team was determined to keep trying.
Lake Mary faces tough battle after losing 4-1 to Texas
Lake Mary's quest for a Little League World Series title got tougher with a 4-1 loss to Texas on Monday night. The team is now in danger of elimination, but remains determined to continue on the road.
Despite struggles on the mound that led to a 4-1 loss, the team still had a lot to look forward to.
Aug. 20: Lake Mary beats Metro Region 6-1.
Lake Mary faced a must-win situation going into a matchup with the Metro Region team from Staten Island, New York. The team needed to win four straight games to take the championship. They defeated the Metro Region team, 6-1.
Aug. 21: Lake Mary defeats West Region, 4-3.
Lake Mary narrowly beat a Western team from Wailuku, Hawaii, 4-3. Hawaii rallied in the fourth inning to cut Lake Mary's 4-0 lead to 4-3, but Lake Mary hung in there and advanced to face Henderson, Nevada, on Thursday.
Aug. 22: Lake Mary defeats Mountain Region, 6-3.
The Lake Mary All-Stars advanced to the Little League World Series U.S. Championship Game after defeating the Mountain Region team from Henderson, Nevada, 6-3 at Howard J. Lamade Stadium in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
Lake Mary jumped out to an early lead with four runs in the top of the first inning, and the Florida team was set to play in a rematch against Texas on Saturday.
The winner of that game will advance to Sunday's Little League World Series finals to face the winner of the international tournament, while the losing team will play in a repechage round, also on Sunday.
Aug. 24: Lake Mary wins U.S. Championship, 10-7
The Lake Mary All-Stars defeated Texas, 10-7, in the national championship game on Saturday to advance to the LLWS World Championship game.
The Southeast team from Lake Mary, Florida is introduced before playing against the Southwest team from Borne, Texas in the U.S. Championship at Lamade Stadium in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, on August 24, 2024. (Photo by Dylan
Lake Mary overcame a 4-0 deficit to score multiple runs in the late innings to secure the victory, a game that advanced the All-Stars to face Chinese Taipei, an Asia-Pacific team from Taiwan, in the World Championship.
The Southeast team from Lake Mary, Florida celebrates after defeating the Southwest team from Borne, Texas, in the U.S. Championship at Lamade Stadium in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, on August 24, 2024. (Photo by Dylan B
Fan reaction to the Lake Mary All-Stars' win over Texas
Lake Mary's Little League All-Star baseball team defeated Texas, 10-7, on Saturday to advance to the LLWS World Championship game.
The Southeast team from Lake Mary, Florida celebrates after defeating the Southwest team from Borne, Texas, in the U.S. Championship at Lamade Stadium in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, on August 24, 2024. (Photo by Dylan B
Downtown Lake Mary Parade
A huge celebration parade is being planned for the Lake Mary All-Stars.
On Saturday, August 31, the City of Lake Mary will host a parade through downtown Lake Mary to celebrate the team's success. The parade begins at 10:00 AM.
The city said in a Facebook post that additional details will be released.
“Join us for an exciting day celebrating the incredible effort, dedication and sportsmanship of our young athletes and their coaches. This is a tribute you won't want to miss. Join us in a once-in-a-lifetime community celebration and cheer on our champions!”
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