BASEBALL/Taiwan wins first Little League World Series title in 29 years

Williamsport, Aug. 24 (CNA) Taiwan claimed its first Little League World Series title in 29 years Sunday, as Taipei's Dong Yuan Elementary School defeated a team from Las Vegas 7-0 in the championship game in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

It was Taiwan's first championship in Williamsport since 1996, ending a nearly three-decade drought.

"It has been a very long time ... and we finally made it," Taiwan manager Lai Min-nan (賴敏男) said after the game.

Lai said he last managed a Dong Yuan team in Williamsport in 2015, when it was eliminated after four games.

"There is a saying in Taiwan that it takes 10 years to sharpen a sword," Lai said.

Overcome with emotion, Lai said he discovered the group of young players two years ago and believed they had the talent to reach Williamsport again.

Ace pitcher Lin Chin-tse (林晉擇), who can throw 80 mph, carried a perfect game into the fifth inning, retiring the first 13 batters he faced.

Lin threw 58 pitches over five innings, allowing one hit and no walks while striking out four.

At the plate, Lin also drove in three runs with a triple during Taiwan's five-run fifth inning.

Reliever Chen Qi-sheng (陳啟盛) pitched the sixth to seal the shutout.

"I am very excited," Lin said. "In the first inning I was nervous, but after that it was smooth."

It was Taiwan's 18th title overall, the most of any country outside the United States. Taiwan won five straight championships from 1977 to 1981 in the annual Williamsport tournament, which features half its teams from the U.S. and half from abroad.

Representing the Asia-Pacific region, Dong Yuan advanced by beating Aruba 1-0 in Saturday's international final. Las Vegas won the U.S. championship 8-2 over Fairfield, Connecticut, later Saturday to reach the title game.

Last year, Taiwan's Guishan Elementary School from Taoyuan finished runner-up. The most recent international champion before Sunday was Japan in 2017.