Idaho threatened late, but it wasn’t enough as Washington held on to punch its ticket to Williamsport.
The Little League World Series regional finals continued with the West Valley Little League All-Stars (Eagle, Idaho) taking on Soundview Little League (Tacoma, Washington) Thursday, Aug. 13 for a chance to represent the Northwest in Williamsport. Soundview jumped out to a big, early lead thanks to a four-run first inning, and its aggressive approach at the plate carried it through an 8-5 win.
Idaho steamrolled through the winner’s bracket, outscoring its first two opponents by a combined score of 21-5. For Washington, it had to claw back after losing to West Valley 9-3 in the regional semifinals on Tuesday before bouncing back the next day with an 8-2 rout of Oregon in the elimination bracket. Washington took full advantage of its chance at redemption on Thursday, putting up 13 total hits compared to just six for Idaho.
The Northwest will be represented by a team out of Washington for the sixth straight year. Soundview will take on Phenix City, Alabama, in the opening round of the Little League World Series on Aug. 19.
USA TODAY Sports had live updates from the Northwest regional final in San Bernardino, California. Check it out below:
How to watch 2026 Little League World Series Northwest Region Championship
All times Eastern.
Idaho vs. Washington, 9 p.m. on ESPN
Little League World Series Aug. 12 regional results
-
Iowa 11, Missouri 6 (Midwest Region) FINAL
-
Maine 10, Vermont 0 (New England Region) – FINAL in 5 innings
-
Oregon 8, Washington 2 (Northwest Region) – FINAL
-
Connecticut 8, New York 4 (Metro Region) – FINAL
-
Ohio 6, Kentucky 0 (Great Lakes Region Championship) – FINAL
-
Hawaii 5, Arizona 2 (West Region)
FINAL: Washington 8, Idaho 5
Tacoma is heading to Williamsport!
Kasen Workman allowed a leadoff walk but rebounded a strikeout and fielder’s choice before Troy Thielman legged out an infield single to put runners at the corners with two outs. Clayton Andrews then just beat out the throw at first and Mikey Keck lined a hard single into the gap in right field to bring in two runs and chip away at the Washington lead.
River Matson then walked to load the bases. Braxton Lowe chopped a grounder that somehow got passed the second baseman into the outfield as two more runs came home.
Tacoma’s lead was suddenly down to three runs, but Workman got Nolan Ulery looking for strike three to close the door on Idaho.
Washington will represent the Northwest region for the sixth straight year and will open the Little League World Series against Alabama on Aug. 19.
Top of the 6th: Washington 8, Idaho 1
Evan Yarbrough’s walk put Washington’s leadoff batter aboard for the fourth time in six innings. He immediately took second on a wild pitch and later advanced to third, but would end up stranded there. But even without adding an extra insurance run, Tacoma looks to be three outs away from punching their ticket to Williamsport.
Bottom of the 5th: Washington 8, Idaho 1
Frankie McCabe ends his outing with two more strikeouts to put him at 10 on the day. Having passed the 85-pitch limit during Micah Hedberg’s at-bat, McCabe put him away and walked off the mound to a standing ovation from the crowd in San Bernardino.
Kasen Workman finished off the inning with a four-pitch strikeout of his own on Jackson Wilhite to cap off a 1-2-3 inning for Washington.
Top of the 5th: Washington 8, Idaho 1
Tacoma loaded the bases with one out on three straight singles, and Rhonan Loomis chopped one more up the middle to score Artie Hinzman from third. Quinn Herchold then scored on a wild pitch from Matson as both remaining runners advanced to third and second. Paxton Hansen walked to re-load the bases to force another pitching change for Idaho.
Clayton Andrews took the mound and promptly got out of the inning with a pop up by Anthony Romero.
Bottom of the 4th: Washington 6, Idaho 1
Frankie McCabe had runners on first and third with two outs, but drew a first-pitch pop up from Gunnar Scroggins and took it upon himself to make the catch in foul territory to get out of the jam. At 78 pitches, it’s likely that the fifth inning will be McCabe’s last on the mound.
Bottom of the 3rd: Washington 6, Idaho 1
Frankie McCabe looks fully settled in now, and he continues to deal. He struck out the first two batters of the inning to put him at eight Ks on the day and after walking Troy Thielman, he induced a routine grounder from Clayton Andrews to first for the third out.
Top of the 3rd: Washington 6, Idaho 1
McCabe’s second hit of the game to put runners on first and second with no outs ended up chasing Idaho starter Gunnar Scroggins after two innings. River Matson took the mound in his place and immediately drew a pop up at short from Paxton Hansen. Micah Hedberg made the catch and then a great heads-up throw to second to get a much-needed double play.
Bottom of the 2nd: Washington 6, Idaho 1
Micah Hedberg took a foul ball that ricocheted off his bat to the face just under his helmet, but he took it in stride and worked a one-out walk for Idaho. He would get stranded at first, however, as McCabe settled in on the mound to strike out the next two batters.
Top of the 2nd: Washington 6, Idaho 1
It didn’t take long for Tacoma to respond. They continued their aggressive mentality at the plate as Casey Granlund mashed a double into the alley in left-center field to score Bradley Williams all the way from first. Granlund later scored on an infield single from Quinn Herchold.
Bottom of the 1st: Washington 4, Idaho 1
Francis McCabe struggled with his command, hitting two of the three first batters he faced, triggering an early mound visit from Washington’s manager. River Matson walked with the count full to load the bases for West Valley Little League with one out. Idaho second baseman Nolan Ulery poked an RBI single to get a run back, but McCabe limited the damage by striking out the next batter for the third out.
Washington jumps ahead 4-0 in big first inning
09:19 PM ET, August 13 2026, Andrés Soto
Soundview Little League led off the game with three consecutive base hits from Kasen Workman, Rhonan Loomis and Francis McCabe. With the bases loaded and no outs, Paxton Hansen lined another single into right field to bring in two runs.
Tacoma stayed aggressive as Hansen stole second on the first pitch of the next at-bat. As Idaho’s catcher tried to throw Hansen out, McCabe took off from third and scored the third run of the game with Eagle yet to record an out. Hansen later scored on an error after Evan Yarbrough singled into center field and the throw home went wide and hit the backstop, giving McCabe enough time to come home as Yarbrough took second.
Massachusetts beats Maine 8-0 in New England Region Championship
Bridgewater, Massachusetts punched their ticket to Williamsport behind a masterclass from starting pitcher Dominik Mombeleur’s 14 strikeouts on 86 pitches. The stage is now set for the second game of the day: the Northwest Region Championship between Idaho and Washington.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Idaho vs Washington LLWS Northwest Region Championship: Final score, recap
