WILLIAMSPORT, Pa.
Alex Jondal was clutch when Mill Creek needed him most.
Jondal’s walk-off single to deep left with two out in the bottom of the seventh inning drove in Jason Todd with the winning run, giving Mill Creek a 3-2 victory over Jeffersonville, Ind., Tuesday at the Little League World Series.
Mill Creek completed pool play with a 2-1 record and has all but assured itself a spot in the U.S. semifinals. The Northwest Regional champs will know for sure after tonight’s game between Hagerstown, Md. (1-1) and South Lake Charles, La. (2-0). Jeffersonville (0-3) was eliminated. The top two teams from the four-team pool advance to the U.S. semifinals.
In Tuesday’s game, Mill Creek tied the score in the bottom of the fifth inning when Jondal hit a two-out bloop single to left off reliever Christopher Wenger to drive in Todd who had doubled with one out.
Todd pitched a strong game, allowing two runs on five hits and striking out 10 in 5 2/3 innings before hitting the mandatory 85-pitch limit. Alec Kisena pitched 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief to earn the win.
If, as expected, Mill Creek winds up as the second seed out of Pool A, the Washington state champions will play Waipahu, Hawaii, the champion of Pool B, at 5 p.m. Wednesday in the first U.S. final.
Pitcher Derrick Mahlum would get the start for Mill Creek.
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