SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (AP) - Youbin Choi struck out 14 and South Korea beat Panama 7-2 Saturday to reach the championship game of the Little League World Series.
The Asia-Pacific Region champs won the international bracket. They will try for their first title Sunday against the winner of a game between teams from Goodlettsville, Tennessee, and Endwell, New York.
Choi gave up six hits in six innings.
Seum Kwon and Jaekyeong Kim hit two-run homers and Wontae Cho also homered for South Korea (4-0).
Carlos Gonzalez had three hits for the Latin American Region champions.
South Korea got five runs in the second to take charge, starting when Minho Choi doubled and scored on a single by Junhyeok Lee.
Kwon then homered off Joaquin Tejada, and Kim homered off Esmith Pineda.
Choi had retired six of seven batters before giving up a hit to begin the fourth. Edwar Bethancourth hit an RBI single in the fifth.