Little League World Series live: Updates, highlights from Day 2 of the tournament

The 2024 Little League World Series was back in action today from South Williamsport, Pa., as eight teams headed to the field for the first time in the double-elimination tournament.

Ten international teams and 10 U.S. squads meet in the tournament this year. The 10 international teams include the Caribbean, Mexico, Asia-Pacific, Canada, Japan, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and Europe-Africa regional champions. The 10 domestic teams include the New England, West, Southeast, Midwest, Metro, Mountain, Southwest, and Mid-Atlantic regional champs. U.S. teams have won the last six Little League World Series titles.

The Japan, Puerto Rico, Metro, Mountain, Cuba, Europe-Africa, Southwest, and Mid-Atlantic region teams wree all heading to the field for the first time today. They hoped to follow up an exciting opening day of the tournament that featured two no-hitters. Follow along for all of the action from Thursday's games:

Texas 9, Pennsylvania 0

Texas was in total control of this game from the get-go, with Pennsylvania's best chance to score coming way back in the first inning. A massive fifth inning secured the win for Texas, but the dagger came in the fourth when Texas starting pitcher Cayden Guffey homered over the left field wall to give Texas a 3-0 lead. Julian Hurst also recorded 10 strikeouts for Texas. Just a masterful performance all around from the Texas team.

Texas with a massive fifth

Texas was threatening a massive inning in the top of the fifth. With the bases already loaded, Pennsylvania pitcher Tyler Neeld walked a run in, and nearly surrendered a double down the left field line to Cooper Hastings. Hasting would ground into a fielder's choice, but the bases were still loaded with only one out.

Pennsylvania opted to change pitchers to Will Seveter. But Texas wasn't having any of it. The first batter Siveter faced, Kole Newson, launched a grand slam to center field. Instantly, this game was blown wide open. Texas leads 8-0.

Cayden Guffey extends Texas' lead

The first home run of the Little League World Series belongs to Texas' Cayden Guffey. Guffey launched the first pitch of the bottom of the fourth just beyond the left field wall. It scraped over the yellow paint, and Guffey, who is also pitching for Texas helps bolster his own lead. Texas leads 3-0.

Controversy in third inning

Pennsylvania looked to be well on their way to a quick third. After two quick outs though, the team decided to swap pitchers. In came Dean Hamilton, son of head coach Brad Hamilton. Hamilton looked on his way to the third out, but the Texas batter leaned into a pitch and took a base. There was a long discussion about whether or not the hitter should've been awarded the base, but after all was said and done, there was a runner on first and two outs.

Texas followed that up with two base hits, then Hamilton plunked another batter to walk in a run. 2-0, Texas. Hamilton would secure the third out, but not after the HBP controversy doubled Texas' lead. It's 2-0 heading into the bottom of the third.

Texas snags the first run of the game

An RBI single from Aiden Munoz bounced over 1st base to drive in a runner from second base. Munoz himself would wind up at second after a wild pitch, but that's as far as he'd get. Texas leads 1-0.

Close play at first keeps Pennsylvania up to bat

Texas seemed to be in trouble, having allowed runners on first and second with only one away. Fortunately for them though, pitcher Caden Guffey dialed up a perfect double play ball. Initially, the runner was ruled out at first. After review though, he was called safe. That gave Pennsylvania one more opportunity to score, but Guffey shut the door, striking out the hitter on three pitches. We're scoreless after one.

Texas vs. Pennsylvania

After a leadoff double to start the game, Texas was unable to bring the runner home. A great first frame defensively from Pennsylvania keeps this game scoreless heading into the bottom of the first.

Cuba wins 4-1

Late heroics from Marloon Herrera gave Cuba the lead in the fifth inning. From there, the game was all Cuba. Yans Espinosa closed out the game, getting Mario Masia on strikes. It took some time, but Cuba's bats came alive at just the right time. They'll face the winner of the Australia-Chinese Taipei matchup.

1st and 3rd shenanigans gives Cuba another run

With runners on first and third and one out, Cuba pulled a classic Little League play, sending the runner toward second. The Czech Republic tried to catch the runner on third off-guard throwing the ball back to the pitcher, and it worked. They had him in a rundown, but the runner, Yosmin Fuentes was too fast. He made it home after the throw to third. That was followed up with an RBI single.

In the last two innings, Cuba has managed to take the lead and give themselves some insurance. It's 4-1, and Cuba is still up to bat.

Deivy Hernandez swapped out

After four great innings, Hernandez surrendered a base hit to Kolomoiets to lead off the bottom of the fifth. That was enough for the team to pull him out. Hernadez was replaced by Yans Espinosa, who retired the side in order. Cuba still leads 2-1 after five innings.

Kolomoiets is human after all

Don't get confused, Kolomeits is still superhuman. He tossed four scoreless innings after all. However, Cuba was finally able to get their leadoff man on base with a walk in the fifth inning. Kolomoiets snuffed out that little bit of momentum right away though, striking out Alejandro Vazquez looking. Kolomoiets then got Deivy Hernandez on strikes as well.

Cuba would finally get a good hit afterwards. Leonardo Junco went the other way with a fastball, drilling it down the left field line. Runners were on second and third, the first time Cuba had multiple baserunners all game.

Kolomoiets fell behind in the count 1-2 early, but Herrera managed to drill a base hit down the left field line and drive in Cuba's first runs of the game. Just like that, the script was flipped. Kolomoiets was forced out the game, and his team found itself down.

Cuba leads 2-1 heading into the bottom of the fifth.

Czech Republic, Cuba locked in pitcher's duel

Outside of a bunt single in the first inning, Kolomoiets has been perfect through four innings, but he hasn't outclassed his Cuban counterpart, Deivy Hernandez. Ever since the first inning, Hernandez has settled into a groove and even through a perfect third inning to keep his team in the game.

The Czech Republic still leads 1-0.

Kolomoiets has stopped seven in a row

Another perfect frame for Kolomoiets and the Czech Republic seems to be in good shape as long as he's on the mound. Kolomoiets added two more strikeouts in the third inning, giving him six on the day. He hasn't allowed a baserunner since the first inning.

Deivy Hernandez evades jam

With a runner on third and only one out, Cuba starter Deivy Hernandez was got a strikeout and then forced the Czech Republic's Mario Masia to pop out to the catcher in foul territory. Hernandez has faced trouble, but has been a huge reason his team is still in this game. Czech Republic still leads 1-0 after two.

Illia Kolomoiets with strong second

After watching his team take the lead in the first, Kolomoiets backed them up with a terrific second inning, going three-up, three-down while fanning two.

Cuba vs. Czech Republic

Cuba starting pitcher Deivy Hernandez is 5'1, but still reaches 65 miles per hour. That didn't scare the Czech Republic's bats though, Dominik Maly drove in the first run of the game just three batters in with a double down the left field line. Hernandez would not be able to retire the next hitter, but he'd settle down and secure the next two outs soon after.

Czech Republic leads 1-0 after one inning of play.

Erickson with a complete game win

Nevada wins 9-1!

Stellar pitching performances have been the theme in this year's Little League World Series. On Day 1, we saw two no-hitters and a one-hitter. Day 2 just offered us a complete game win. Erickson went into the last batter of the game with 83 pitches, allowing him to finish the game.

Between Erickson's incredible effort on the mound as well as an RBI double to drive in what would be the game-winning run, it's hard to argue anyone else was this game's MVP. Nevada's next game is schedule for August 19 against the winner of the Great Lakes-West region matchup.

Nevada pulling away

Nevada dropped a five-spot on New York in the fifth inning, capped off by Dominic Laino. Everyone in the Nevada lineup is seeing the ball well, and with Erickson still low on pitch count, Nevada could be setting themselves up nicely for a long tournament run as their bats are heating up. That's a winning combination.

New York has one more shot to tie this one up. They trail 9-1 heading into the 6th.

Baserunning prevents New York from scoring

A defensive mishap in foul territory put some stress on the Nevada team. However, that stress dissolved away when moments later, a baserunning mistake caused the New York runner on second to be thrown out at home.

New York has had trouble seeing Nevada pitcher Wyatt Erickson, so that out was massive. New York would not be able to add any runs.

Nevada gets their run back

Nevada seems to have solved their scoring problem. The first two innings likely frustrated the team as they came so close to scoring but couldn't push anyone across. The third and fourth innings have been different stories. They've now scored in two straight innings to regain their three-run lead. Nevada leads 4-1.

New York, Grippo answer back

New York had been having trouble seeing Wyatt Erickson through three, but the fourth inning was different. Erickson got two quick outs, but after surrendering a two-out baserunner, Grippo laced a single to right field that bounced off the right fielder's glove to the wall. That would allow the runner to score from first. Grippo would wind up at second.

New York still trails 3-1, but there is newfound life in their bats, and perhaps they could knock Erickson out of this game quicker than expected.

Nevada breaks through

Through 2.2 innings, New York pitcher, Stephen Grippo constantly found himself in tough situations. The third inning was no different as Nevada had put two men in scoring position. The bright side? Only one more out was needed to get out of the inning.

Unfortunately for Grippo, a single up the middle from Russell McGee would open the floodgates. That drove home the first run, and it was followed up by a double from the opposing pitcher Wyatt Erickson to drive in two more. Grippo would get out of the inning after, but the damage had been done. Nevada leads 3-0 after three.

Wyatt Erickson dealing through three

Even though he's surrendered a hit, Erickson's performance on the mound for Nevada has been stellar. Not only is he getting out, but he's making quick work of hitters, keeping his pitch count low. At this pace, Erickson could go a complete game and still have over 20 pitches left before he reaches the daily limit.

Double play ends New York's threat

Quicker than you could blink, the top of the second inning was over thanks to a 4-6-3 double play. Nevada's pitching has been top notch through two.

Grippo worked in the first

New York pitcher Stephen Grippo may not have surrendered a run in the first inning, but Nevada's hitters still made Grippo work to get out of the inning. Grippo saw five hitters, and threw over 20 pitches in the first inning. Given that the limit for a single day in the Little League World Series is 85, there's a chance that Grippo's outing could be shorter than expected.

New York vs. Nevada

Nevada's pitcher Wyatt Erickson started off this game with a walk. That's not a great omen, but he settled down immediately afterwards, recording two straight strikeouts and forcing New York's cleanup hitter Jake Romero into a weak groundout to short. Nevada comes to the plate looking to set the tone offensively early.

Japan defeats Puerto Rico, 11-0, in four innings

This one is over early as the 10-run mercy rule takes effect.

Iwashita sat down the three Puerto Rican batters in order: strikeout, foul pop-out, strikeout. He finishes the complete, four-inning game with a shutout intact and eight strikeouts. Puerto Rico only managed three baserunners in the game on a walk, a hit and an error.

Japan will play the winner of tomorrow's Mexico-Latin America (Venezuela) clash on Monday, Aug. 19. Puerto Rico will play Canada in the elimination bracket on Saturday, Aug. 17.

Puerto Rico needs two runs to continue

Due to the 10-run mercy rule that starts in the fourth inning, Puerto Rico, as the team trailing 11-0, needs to score at least two runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. If they can't manage the offensive output, the game is over.

Puerto Rico impresses with nice fielding in fourth

The left side of Puerto Rico's infield has shined in this fourth inning. First, shortstop Louis Martin cut off a ground ball up the middle and fired a throw across the infield to get Yuma Shino out at first base. Then, third baseman Fernando Santos recovered after misplaying a short-hop grounder to get Tsuyoshi Ito on his throw to first.

With two outs in the top of the fourth, Jadiel De Jesus enters to pitch.

Iwashita works around trouble

After a walk to start the inning, the Japanese starter struck out two batters (he's up to six total) and worked around an error for another scoreless frame. It's still 11-0 Japan through three innings.

Japan taking advantage of Puerto Rico's miscues

It's 11-0 Japan thanks to a couple of errors and a wild pitch. Puerto Rico eventually gets out of the inning, but Japan has a dominating lead after a six-run third inning.

Little League World Series run rule

A game in the LLWS is declared over via the run rule if a team is winning by:

• 15 runs in the third inning (after trailing team has batted)

• 10 runs in the fourth-sixth innings (after trailing team has batted)

Iwashita helps his case with a home run

Shades of Shohei Ohtani! Japanese starting pitcher Kanta Iwashita – who has allowed just one baserunner in two innings on the mound – managed to get his barrel on a pitch a foot outside the plate. The result was the first home run of this tournament, and it went off of the camera well in dead center field. It's 9-0 Japan.

Japan adds two more runs in the third

Two more wild pitches allow each of the two runners on second and third base to score. It's 7-0 Japan with one out in the top of the third inning.

Japan up with another scoring chance

A walk and dropped infield pop-up get two runners on for Japan in the top of the third inning, and a wild pitch moves both runners into scoring position with one out.

Iwashita rolling through two

Iwashita struck out three batters in the second inning – all of them swinging – and has only allowed one baserunner so far. He's up to four strikeouts on the day.

Jonyel Cordero gets something going for Puerto Rico

The Puerto Rican first baseman gets his team on base for the first time with a solid base hit to left field. Iwashita had sat down the first five batters before Cordero's hit.

Nieves strands two in second inning

The Puerto Rican pitcher got around some self-induced trouble when he induced a lineout and a swinging strikeout after a hit batsman and a walk. Japan did not add on any runs in the second and still lead, 5-0.

Kanta Iwashita pitches clean inning for Japan

In just 10 pitches, Iwashita gets through the top of Puerto Rico's lineup by inducing a flyout, a swinging strikeout and a ground out to first base on consecutive batters.

Mateo Nieves enters for Puerto Rico

Santos could not escape the first inning thanks to a strong showing from Japan's offense. Nieves induces a flyout to center field on his fourth pitch, and Puerto Rico will get its first chances at the plate.

Japan continues to pile on runs

Sho Tanaka brings another run home with an opposite-field double. A few pitches later, Sora Okamoto's knock up the middle goes just over second baseman Derek Garcia's glove for an RBI single. It's 5-0 Japan, and Puerto Rico is making a pitching change.

Japan tacks on in the first

Another walk and a groundout that moved the runners led to another situation with runners on second and third, this time with two outs. A wild pitch by Fernando Santos went to the backstop, and Honryo came in to score. It's 3-0 Japan, still in the first inning.

Japan takes 2-0 lead

A couple of walks early in the first inning led to quick trouble when a couple of wild pitches and a stolen base led to baserunners on second and third with one out. Taiyo Honryo knocked in both runners with the first base hit of the game, and Japan leads Puerto Rico, 2-0, in the first.

Japan Region taking on Puerto Rico Region to start the day

Japan and Puerto Rico are kicking off the competition in the international side of the bracket on Thursday. It's the first game for each team.

2024 Little League World Series: Time, TV, streaming and how to watch

The 2024 Little League World Series will be broadcast across ESPN, ESPN2, and ABC. Games start at 1 p.m. ET with eight hours of coverage. Each game can also be streamed on ESPN+ or fuboTV.

Stream the LLWS with a fuboTV subscription

When is the LLWS championship game?

The Little League World Series championship game is set for Sunday, Aug. 25 at Lamade Stadium at 3 p.m. ET. The third place game will be on Aug. 25 as well at 10 a.m. ET.

On Saturday, Aug. 24, the United States and international championship games at 3:30 p.m. and 12:30 p.m. ET, respectively, will determine the matchups for those games. The winners will play in the championship game and the losers will play in the third place game.

How does the Little League World Series work?

The Little League World Series is split into two brackets: international and United States. The two sets of teams play separate double-elimination tournaments, meaning each team has to lose twice to be eliminated from contention. Once the two brackets determine a champion and runner-up, those teams play in the championship and third-place games.

The 2024 U.S. Regional Champions

Great Lakes - Hinsdale Little League - Hinsdale, Illinois

Metro - South Shore Little League - Staten Island, New York

Mid-Atlantic - Council Rock Newtown Little League - Newtown, Pennsylvania

Midwest - Sioux Falls Little League - Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Mountain - Paseo Verde Little League - Henderson, Nevada

New England - Salem Little League - Salem, New Hampshire

Northwest - South Hill Little League - Puyallup, Washington

Southeast - Lake Mary Little League - Lake Mary, Florida

Southwest - Boerne Little League - Boerne, Texas

West - Central East Maui Little League - Wailuku, Hawaii

The 2024 International Regional Champions

Asia-Pacific - Kuei-Shan Little League - Taoyuan City, Chinese Taipei

Australia - Hills Little League - Sydney, New South Wales

Canada - Whalley Little League - Surrey, British Columbia

Caribbean - Aruba Center Little League - Santa Cruz, Aruba

Cuba - Santa Clara Little League - Villa Clara, Cuba

Europe-Africa - South Czech Republic Little League - Brno, Czech Republic

Japan - Johoku Little League - Tokyo, Japan

Latin America - Cardenales Little League - Barquisimeto, Venezuela

Mexico - Matamoros Little League - Tamaulipas, Mexico

Puerto Rico - Radames Lopez Little League - Guayama, Puerto Rico

LLWS bracket and schedule

Here is the full 2024 LLWS bracket, courtesy of the Little League World Series:

List of past winners:

Results date back to 2010 LLWS.

• 2023: El Segundo, Calif.

• 2022: Honolulu

• 2021: Taylor, Mich.

• 2020: Canceled due to COVID

• 2019: River Ridge, La.

• 2018: Honolulu

• 2017: Tokyo

• 2016: Maine-Endwell, N.Y.

• 2015: Tokyo

• 2014: Seoul, South Korea

• 2013: Tokyo

• 2012: Tokyo

• 2011: Huntington Beach, Calif.

• 2010: Tokyo

When is the 2024 MLB Little League Classic? TV, time and how to watch

The seventh annual MLB Little League Classic will take place on Monday, Aug. 18 at 7 p.m. ET with the New York Yankees taking on the Detroit Tigers in Williamsport. The game will air on ESPN.

Little League World Series games today: Aug. 15 schedule, results

ESPN will broadcast all four games on Thursday.

All times Eastern.

LLWS Round 1

• Japan Region vs. Puerto Rico Region, 1 p.m. | Volunteer Stadium, Williamsport, Pennsylvania

• Metro Region vs. Mountain Region, 3 p.m. | Lamade Stadium, Williamsport, Pennsylvania

• Cuba Region vs. Europe-Africa Region, 5 p.m. | Volunteer Stadium, Williamsport, Pennsylvania

• Southwest Region vs. Mid-Atlantic Region, 7 p.m. | Lamade Stadium, Williamsport, Pennsylvania

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Little League World Series live: Updates for Thursday's games