As the world turns its eyes to Williamsport to celebrate the historic 75th Anniversary of the Little League Baseball® World Series, a total of 20 teams from around the globe are set to compete with more Little Leaguers® taking the field than ever before on August 17-28.
Meet the 20 teams that will be making lifelong memories in Williamsport this summer:
Asia-Pacific Region: Fu-Lin Little League (Taipei City, Chinese Taipei)
Fu-Lin Little League’s journey to Williamsport got off to a rocky start after dropping its opening round game in the Asia-Pacific Region tournament to South Korea, but the team rebounded quickly by putting together three straight wins, including a tightly contested rematch against South Korea in the championship game. The team from Chinese Taipei will look to add to the LLBWS-record 17 championship banners in the country’s 30th appearance in the tournament.
Australia Region: Brisbane North Region Little League (Brisbane, Australia)
Brisbane North Region Little League went 6-1 in the Australia Region tournament, falling to Hills Little League in pool play before winning the rematch, 4-0, in the championship game. Brisbane North Region Little League will look to surpass Australia’s most successful outing in Williamsport from 2013, where Hills LL was able to notch two wins before being knocked out of the elimination bracket by Mexico. This will be the eighth time Australia is represented in the LLBWS and the first visit for Brisbane North Region Little League.
Canada Region: Little Mountain Little League (Vancouver, Canada)
Little Mountain Little League opened the Canada Region tournament by scoring double-digit runs in six consecutive games, adding two more wins in the semifinal and championship games. The team accumulated 101 runs over its eight wins, including the three most important scores that allowed Little Mountain Little League to sneak past Calgary Rocky Mountain Little League by just one run in the semifinals. This marks the 62nd time a Canadian team will play in the LLBWS, and Little Mountain Little League’s second visit to Williamsport after picking up an opening-round victory against Panama in 2010.
Caribbean Region: Pabao Little League (Willemstad, Curaçao):
Pabao Little League is back at the LLBWS to defend the International Championship banner won in 2019. The team’s 3-1 victory over Cuba in the Caribbean Region Championship game secured the league’s 10th trip to Williamsport and the country’s 14th overall. Since its first LLWS in 1980, Curaçao has a 41-23 record, winning a championship in 2004 to go along with runner-up finishes in 2005 and 2019.
Europe and Africa Region: Emilia Romagna Little League (Bologna, Italy)
Emilia Romagna Little League came out of the Europe and Africa Region tournament with a 4-1 record and plenty of memories after playing the team out of Ukraine in an unforgettable opening round matchup. Out of Italy’s six appearances in the LLBWS, five of them have come from the team out of Bologna. In the league’s most recent trip to Williamsport, the team was the youngest in the tournament with two 10-year-olds and four players under 12.
Japan Region: Takarazuka Little League (Takarazuka, Japan)
Takarazuka Little League’s hitting propelled the team through the Japan Region tournament where they scored over 10 runs in three out of four victories. The league will be making its first-ever trip to the LLBWS this year while Japan is sending a team to Williamsport for the 31st time since gaining direct entry into the tournament in 2007. Overall, the country has won 11 LLBWS championship banners, good for second most all-time.
Latin America Region: 14 de Septiembre Little League (Managua, Nicaragua)
The Latin America Region champion, 14 de Septiembre Little League, paved the way to Williamsport on the mound, allowing less than one run in five out of six games in the Region Tournament. Named after a historical battle for Nicaraguan independence, the 14 de Septiembre Little League will be only the third team from Nicaragua to play in the LLBWS and the first since 1970.
Mexico Region: Matamoros Little League (Matamoros, Mexico)
Matamoros Little League’s chances to earn a Mexico Region championship seemed low when they were in a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the fifth. However, some strong pitching worked Matamoros Little League out of the jam, and after scoring two runs in the top of the sixth, the squad secured Mexico’s 34th LLBWS appearance and the league’s sixth. Matamoros Little League will look to build on Mexico’s 72-55 record at the LLBWS that includes four runner-up finishes, three third-place finishes, and three championships (1957, 1958, 1997).
Panama Region: Aguadulce Cabezera Little League (Aguadulce, Panama)
Aguadulce Cabezera Little League punched its ticket to Williamsport in resounding fashion, defeating Villa de Los Santos Little League, 12-0, in the first-ever Panama Region championship game to cap a perfect 5-0 record. Panama has sent 10 teams to the LLBWS as a part of the Latin America Region, with Aguadulce Little League making three of those appearances in Williamsport. This marks the country’s first year with direct entry into the tournament as part of the event’s expanded bracket.
Puerto Rico Region: Guaynabo Baseball Little League (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico)
Guaynabo Little League only dropped one game in the first-ever Puerto Rico Region tournament as part of the expanded bracket, losing to the team from Vega Baja in its third game. The squad was able to fight back after the loss, defeating Vega Baja in back-to-back games on the final day of the tournament to earn the league’s first-ever appearance in the LLBWS. A total of 11 teams have represented Puerto Rico in Williamsport since the country’s first appearance in 1959, most recently notching a 3-2 record in the 2018 LLBWS, with this year marking the country’s first year with direct entry.
Great Lakes Region: Hagerstown (Ind.) Little League
After narrowly defeating the team from Kentucky in back-to-back games during the Great Lakes Region tournament, Hagerstown Little League will be representing Indiana in Williamsport for the 17th time in the tournament’s 75-year history. The trio of Jaykob Troutwine, Gavin White, and Graham Vinson excelled in the batter’s box throughout the Region tournament, each logging three hits across Hagerstown Little League’s three games.
Metro Region: Massapequa (N.Y.) Coast Little League
Massapequa Coast Little League paved the way to Williamsport with gritty defense, punctuating their tournament run with a 4-0 shutout win against New Jersey in the first-ever Metro Region championship game. The New York team did not commit an error in its three Metro Region tournament victories and has allowed just under three runs per game since the start of the district tournament. Massapequa Coast Little League will represent the state of New York in Williamsport for the 19th time.
Mid-Atlantic Region: Hollidaysburg Area (Pa.) Summer Baseball Little League
When Hollidaysburg Area Summer Baseball Little League was not busy on the diamond earning Pennsylvania’s 35th LLBWS berth, the players made sure to give back to the community by volunteering at the Mid-Atlantic Region Challenger game in Bristol. It was there that the squad harnessed it’s “Bull Power,” a phrase coined by a Challenger player who became close to the team, which gave Hollidaysburg Area Summer Baseball League the extra energy it needed to defeat Delaware, 7-3, in the new-look Mid-Atlantic Region championship game.
Midwest Region: Davenport (Iowa) Southeast Little League
Davenport Southeast Little League is no stranger to close games, with two of its three wins in the Midwest Region tournament coming in extra innings. A walk-off Blake Bishop sacrifice fly gave the team from Iowa the edge over Wisconsin, and Jameson Andresen battled at the plate to draw a walk that brought home the game winning run against Missouri in the Midwest Region championship game. Davenport Southeast Little League is 19-1 since the start of district tournament play and will look to continue its hot streak in the state’s 15th trip to the LLBWS.
Mountain Region: Snow Canyon Little League (Santa Clara, Utah)
The inaugural Mountain Region tournament was a success for Snow Canyon Little League, as the team went 3-0 behind the bat of Falynn Randall. Falynn, who will be the 21st female to play in Williamsport, led her team from the batter’s box hitting .500, logging two runs and striking out only once in the Region tournament. Snow Canyon Little League will be the first team from Utah to appear in the LLBWS.
New England Region: Middleboro (Mass.) Little League
Middleboro Little League’s bats came to life in its last two games of the New England Region tournament after notching a narrow 1-0 victory over New Hampshire followed by a 10-4 loss to Maine. In the ensuing game, the Massachusetts team rebounded to soundly defeat New Hampshire, 11-0, in the semifinals before blowing out Maine,10-1, to collect the state’s 11th Region championship banner.
Northwest Region: Bonney Lake/Sumner (Wash.) Little League
Bonney Lake/Sumner Little League will represent Washington at the LLBWS for the 14th time after recording a 3-0 record in the Northwest Region tournament. The team’s strength at the plate was enough to punch a ticket to Williamsport with Liam Ferguson and Brody Santman raking in four RBIs a piece in their three Region victories.
Southeast Region: Nolensville (Tenn.) Little League
Nolensville Little League captured the Southeast Region championship banner after winning four straight games and outscoring opponents 28-5 along the way. Led by experienced coach Randy Huth, who has brought a team to the Southeast Region tournament three out of the last five years, Nolensville Little League will look to build on their momentum as they make Tennessee’s 10th appearance in the LLBWS.
Southwest Region: Pearland (Texas) Little League
Pearland Little League is back in Williamsport for the first time since 2015 when now assistant coach Andrew Solomon led the squad to a third-place finish. In this year’s Southwest Region Tournament, Pearland Little League dropped a whopping 48 runs across its four victories en route to securing Texas’ 27th trip to the LLBWS. Pearland’s power in the batter’s box is highlighted by Kaiden Shelton who has launched almost 10 home runs so far this summer.
West Region: Honolulu (Hawaii) Little League
Returning 2018 Little League Baseball World Series Champion coach, Gerald Oda, and Honolulu Little League are back in Williamsport this year after the league took third place in the 2021 LLBWS. The West Region tournament was never in question for Honolulu Little League as they put together three straight wins, including a 3-0 victory over Southern California where pitcher Jaron Lancaster struck out 12 batters in just four innings of work. Honolulu Little League will represent Hawaii for the 15th time in Williamsport.
The 20 teams above kick off the first round of the 75th Anniversary of the Little League Baseball World Series on August 17, with opening ceremonies starting at 11 a.m. ET. For more information about the 2022 Little League Baseball World Series, including downloadable brackets, full schedules and team rosters, visit LittleLeague.org/WorldSeries.