Little League World Series : Connecticut Gives U.S. First Title Since 1983

Trumbull, Conn., became the first U.S. team since 1983 to win the Little League World Series, beating Kaohsiung, Taiwan, 5-2, Saturday.

Marietta, Ga. won the World Series in 1983. Seoul, South Korea, won the next two years and Taiwan won the next three.

“These guys don’t know how to lose,” Trumball Manager Tom Galla said. “They didn’t care who they were playing. They didn’t care that it was Taiwan.

“It’s about time a U.S. team won the World Series.”

Chris Drury, a 5-foot-1 1/2, 126-pound right-hander with a 66-m.p.h. fastball, struck out two, walked four, two of them intentionally, and went two for three.

Drury’s bloop single with two out and the bases loaded in the fourth inning scored two runs and opened a 4-1 lead.

Drury gave up a run in the top of the fifth, but Ken Martin hit a bases-empty home run in the bottom of the inning for Trumbull, a suburb of Bridgeport, Conn.

In the sixth inning, Drury walked the leadoff hitter but then ended the game with a fly out, strikeout and deep fly to the warning track in left field.

Kaohsiung had taken the lead in the first when Lee Chien-Chih doubled with two out and scored as Yeh Chen-Lung’s deep fly to left tipped off Dan McGrath’s glove.

Martin’s bloop two-out single to right scored Cody Lee and Drury in the third and gave Trumbull a 2-1 lead.

“We started slow, but once we realized we could beat them we didn’t stop,” Martin said.

In the fifth inning, Kaohsiung led off with two singles. An intentional walk loaded the bases with one out before Lee hit a run-scoring double to the wall in left field, but McGrath’s throw caught Huang Chin-Chih trying to score from second.

Lee, an 86-pound right-handed submarine pitcher, was relieved after Martin’s home run to lead off the fifth. Lee gave up five runs and six hits, struck out three and walked none.