Sluggers from Iowa, Florida win home run derby at LLWS

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (AP) — A softball slugger from Iowa and a baseball player from Florida won the inaugural Little League Home Run Derby on Saturday at the Little League World Series.

Aubrey Clark of Johnston, Iowa, beat Jeylene Joza of Jersey City, N.J., in a tiebreaker in the championship round of the softball bracket.

Even though Clark admitted afterward that she got nervous as the two-minute clock wound down in each round, she was aided a couple of times by late home runs to advance to the championship round.

“Once I got my first (home run), that’s when I started to feel not as much pressure,” Clark said. “When I know that it’s my last pitch, I just put a lot more into it.”

Clark finished with 12 total home runs, including the winning home run that came on her final swing in the tiebreaker of the championship.

But she almost didn’t get that far.

In the first round of the competition, she hit a home run on her final swing in the tiebreaker of the round just to move on to the second round.

“It feels great,” Clark said. “I never thought I would be able to come here.”

Everest Ouellette of Palm Harbor, Fla., topped in the baseball competition after he hit his 15th home run — the one that sealed the victory — in walk-off fashion. He edged Nate Hawton-Henley of Oakton, Va., who had a few dozen family and friends from his hometown in attendance.

Ouellette hit a total of 37 home runs throughout all three rounds.