The New Zealand Senior Little League team has won the Asia Pacific Qualifying tournament to advance to the U16 Little League World Series in South Carolina.

The Daniel Tan-managed team beat China 2-0 in the tournament final on Sunday night to secure victory in the tournament and book their place at the world finals in late July.

The picked up wins over the Philippines (13-4) and Hong Kong (9-8) before dropping a fixture to Guam (0-13).

New Zealand bounced back to beat Guam 1-0 on the back of seven shut-out innings from pitcher Tiachi Nakao to advance to the championship game.

The 2-0 win over China in the final means New Zealand will represent the Asia Pacific region at the World Series.

Article added: Monday 08 July 2019