Central East Maui Little League of Wailuku, Hawaii, became the fifth team to qualify for this year’s Senior League World Series on Monday night.
The Hawaiian club won the U.S. West title for the second time in three years, emerging from the losers’ bracket with back-to-back one-run victories over previously unbeaten Nogales, Arizona, 4-3 and 6-5 in the championship round of the regional tournament played at Sacramento, California.
Central East Maui, which lost its second game of the U.S. West tourney 4-3 to Manhattan Beach, California, rallied to win five consecutive games to qualify for the SLWS. The Hawaiians entered Monday’s championship round needing two wins over Arizona while Arizona needed just one victory.
Hawaii, which went 2-2 in the 2014 SLWS, joins Australia, Spain, Puerto Rico and Maine District 3 champion Bronco-Hermon as qualifiers for this year’s World Series that begins Sunday at Mansfield Stadium in Bangor.
Representatives from Canada and the U.S. East, Southeast, Southwest and Central are scheduled to be determined by Wednesday night despite rain that forced postponement of a game Monday at the East and Southwest regionals.
