Friday at the 2026 Little League World Series? Absolutely bonkers, people. We just witnessed two different teams throw combined no-hitters, and it happened within minutes of each other right there in Williamsport.
Iowa’s Unbelievable 1-0 Nail-Biter
Davenport Northwest, repping Iowa and the Midwest, kicked things off with an insane 1-0 no-hit defeat of California’s Sweetwater Valley. You gotta talk about Cooper Thissen here. This kid was on another level, ringing up a ridiculous 15 strikeouts across six innings. Seriously, *fifteen*! And if that wasn’t enough, he crushed a leadoff solo homer in the bottom of the first, right after striking out the side. Pure electricity! But then, top of the sixth, things got tight. Thissen hit his 90-pitch limit, walked two batters, and had to come out. Anthony Johnson Jr. came in, allowed another walk, and suddenly it was bases loaded with the game-tying run on third. Talk about pressure! Johnson Jr. kept his cool though, striking out the next two batters to seal the stunning 1-0 victory. What a performance!
Curaçao Cruises to Their Own No-No
And if you thought that was all the drama for the day, you were dead wrong. While Iowa was closing out their nail-biter, right next door, Curaçao’s Pariba squad was throwing their own combined no-no against Japan’s Joto team from Tokyo. These guys cruised to a dominant 6-0 win. Jaymiëll Martina was lights out, pitching 4 2/3 no-hit innings and fanning seven of the 16 batters he faced. Then Giendry Ryan stepped in to finish the job, closing out the final 1 1/3 innings for another massive victory.
These double-elimination brackets are brutal, but Friday’s history-making wins mean Iowa and Curaçao are moving on in the winners’ bracket. That’s huge. California, on the other hand, is heading to the elimination bracket to face Phenix City, Alabama, representing the Southeast. And Japan? They’ll battle it out against Los Nacionales from the Dominican Republic, which is representing the Caribbean region. Every game is do-or-die now. Who’s gonna keep their tournament dreams alive?
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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