The 2001

Little League World Series The Little League World Series is an annual baseball tournament for children—typically boys—aged 10 to 12 years old, held in the Eastern United States. Originally called the National Little League Tournament, it was later renamed for the Wor ...

took place between August 17 and August 26 in

South Williamsport, Pennsylvania South Williamsport is a borough in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is famous for hosting the Little League World Series. The population was 6,259 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Williamsport, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statis ...

. The Kitasuna Little League of

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Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

defeated Apopka National Little League of

Apopka, Florida Apopka is a city in Orange County, Florida. The city's population was 55,000 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area. ''Apopka'' comes from Seminole word ''Ahapopka'' for "Potato eating ...

in the championship game of the 55th Little League World Series. This tournament saw the expansion of pool play to 16 teams, eight from the United States, and eight from around the world.

Little League Volunteer Stadium Little League Volunteer Stadium is a baseball stadium in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Along with Howard J. Lamade Stadium, it annually hosts the Little League World Series, one of the few sports events where children 12 years old and young ...

was built to accommodate the number of added games that would be played in the pool stage, and it would also host the consolation game. Following the conclusion of the tournament,

Danny Almonte Danny Almonte Rojas (born April 7, 1987) is a Dominican-American former baseball player who is currently an assistant baseball coach at Cardinal Hayes High School in New York City. Born in Moca in the Dominican Republic, Almonte was a Little Le ...

, a pitcher from the team representing the Mid-Atlantic, would be the center of a scandal where it was discovered that Almonte was not eligible to play in the tournament because he was two years over the maximum age limit. Because of this, the Mid-Atlantic team was forced to forfeit every game in the tournament they participated in retroactively. The 2001 Little League World Series was also the first ever that had a female umpire to call the championship game: Flora Stansbury from

Seneca, Missouri Seneca is a city in western Newton County, Missouri, Newton County, Missouri, United States. The population was 2,336 at the 2010 census. Located on the southwest border of the state, the city is part of the Joplin, Missouri Joplin, Missouri Metrop ...

. U.S. President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

, himself a little leaguer as a child, was also in attendance at the championship game. Nobuhisa Baba's single in the bottom of the sixth drove in the winning run.

Qualification

Between five and twelve teams take part in 16 regional qualification tournaments, which vary in format depending on region. In the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, the qualification tournaments are in the same format as the Little League World Series itself: a round-robin tournament followed by an elimination round to determine the regional champion.

Pool play

The top two teams in each pool moved on to the elimination round. August 17 August 18 August 19 August 20 August 21

International

August 17 August 18 August 19 August 20 August 21 † Game ended by "mercy rule" (at least 10-run difference through 5 innings)

Elimination rounds

Champions path

The Kitasuna LL reached the LLWS with an undefeated record of four wins and no losses. In total, their record was 9–1, their only loss coming in the LLWS qualifying round against Santiago de Veraguas LL of

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

Notable players

Francisco Peña Francisco Peña (Pegna) (born at Villarroya de los Pinares, near Saragossa, about 1540; died at Rome, in 1612) was a Spanish canon lawyer. Life He devoted himself to the study of law at Valencia. Later Philip II of Spain appointed him auditor ...

(

Bronx, New York The Bronx () is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state, state of New York (state), New York. It is south of Westchester County, New York, Westchester County; north and east of the ...

)

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

catcher. Son of

Tony Peña Antonio Francisco Peña Padilla (; born June 4, 1957) is a Dominican former professional baseball player, manager and coach. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball for the Pirates, Cardinals, Red Sox, Indians, White Sox, and Astros. ...

Ruben Tejada Reuben or Reuven is a Biblical male first name from Hebrew רְאוּבֵן (Re'uven), meaning "behold, a son". In the Bible, Reuben was the firstborn son of Jacob. Variants include Rúben in European Portuguese; Rubens in Brazilian Portugues ...

( Santiago de Veraguas, Panama)

infielder

References

External links

2001 official results
via

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{{LLWS Little League World Series