The all-star team from El Segundo will play for a berth in the Little League World Series Friday after winning its first two games in the West Region Tournament.
El Segundo defeated the all-star team from the Hilo Little League, the Hawaii state champion, 6-0, Monday with Max Baker driving in Louis Lappe on a first-inning bases-loaded walk and a third-inning single.
Baker scored on Quinn Boehle’s groundout during the four-run third-inning.
Lappe went 2-for-3, singling in the first and doubling in the third. Lappe also pitched the final inning of the six-inning game, retiring all three batters he faced, striking out two.
El Segundo combined singles by Lennon Salazar and Brooks and an error – – all with two outs — for a run in the fourth inning.
Starter Declan Roberts, Brody Brooks and Lappe combined on a four- hitter. Roberts allowed one hit in three innings, struck out five and walked two. Brooks allowed three hits, struck out three and walked one in two innings.
El Segundo, the Southern California champion, will next play Friday against the winner of Wednesday’s game between Hilo and the all-star team from the Bollinger Canyon Little League from San Ramon, the Northern California champion.
El Segundo defeated Bollinger Canyon, 4-3, Saturday in the opener in the four-team tournament for both teams.
The entire tournament is being played at Al Houghton Stadium in San Bernardino.
El Segundo is 13-1 in four tournaments this summer. It qualified for the West Region Tournament by winning the 10-team Southern California Divisional Tournament.
A team from Los Angeles County has not won the West Region Tournament since 1994, when the all-star team from the Northridge Little League won and went on to win the U.S. championship with a team including future USC and NFL quarterback Matt Cassel.
One other team from Los Angeles County has qualified for the Little League World Series over that span. The all-star team from the Torrance Little League qualified for the Little League World Series in 2021 when the World Series was limited to U.S. teams because of the coronavirus and each of the top two teams from the eight U.S. regions advanced to the World Series instead of just the champion.
