It all happened in Sunday night’s showdown between Florida and Chinese Taipei, including a costly mistake late in the game that helped Florida secure the Little League World Series championship.
The final game went into extra innings, with Florida winning 2-1 in the bottom of the eighth inning, marking the first time a Florida team has won the tournament.
But it didn’t come without drama, first with a miscall by the first base umpire in the sixth inning, then a dramatic error in the ninth.
The deciding play itself was a dramatic moment, with a defensive error by Chinese Taipei leading to the winning goal.
Florida’s Hunter Alexander bunted, and Chinese Taipei’s pitcher and first baseman went to try to bunt it.
The pitcher grabbed the ball and instinctively threw it to first base, but there was no one to cover and the ball flew into no man’s land, scoring the winning run.
The call came in the sixth inning, with Florida trailing by one run and looking to keep its championship dreams alive.
With a runner on first base and one out, the Florida batter tried to hang in there, but the first base umpire ruled him swinging and he struck out.
The only problem with the call was that it was pretty clear to everyone that he wasn’t swinging and shouldn’t have been called out.
The home plate umpire asked the first base umpire to make a call, saying he should have seen the swing more closely.
Chinese Taipei fans celebrated the call, but Florida managed to tie the game and take it into overtime, where they won.
According to Florida Today, Lake Mary is the 24th Florida team to play in the Little League World Series, and only five Florida teams have ever won the national championship.
