PLAY OF THE GAME – Eassie Miller’s game-ending masterpiece: New Hampshire mounted a furious comeback in the sixth inning to load the bases with one out. The lead runners were on the bases when Grayson Buckley hit a dangerous liner down the third base line. Miller had just advanced to third base and caught a line drive for the second out. Miller wasn’t finished yet, but was right near the base and hit third base, completing the double play and giving Hawaii the win.

HAWAII PLAYER OF THE GAME — Hayden Takahashi: Takahashi is a nimble first baseman who also showed off his defensive prowess, hitting 2-for-2 with a two-run single. Takahashi scored the first two runs of the game when he hit a two-run single to center field in the first inning.

NEW HAMPHSIRE PLAYER OF THE GAME – Nolan Dupuis: Dupuis shined in relief, throwing 2 1/3 scoreless innings and striking out four batters. He was especially strong in pressure situations, leaving the bases loaded in the fourth inning. An inning later, Matthew Yang hit a leadoff double, but Dupuis didn’t let it faze him and came storming back, striking out the next three batters.

BIG INNING – Hawaii first: New Hampshire made a big push for Hawaii, but the West champions scored all the runs they needed in the first inning. After Takahashi hit his two-run single, Miller followed with an RBI single. Together, the two went 3 for 3 and reached base four times. Gauge Pacheco sparked the rally with a leadoff walk before Tavares hit an infield single.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent: West catcher Matthew Yang.

BEST PERFORMANCE – New Hampshire’s comeback and Hawaii’s defense: After trailing 3-0, New Hampshire could have collapsed. Instead, Colton Johnson and Dupuis didn’t allow another run. The New England champions were dangerous in the fifth and sixth innings as well, loading the bases each time. Johnson hit an RBI single in the fifth to make it 3-1, but Hawaii third baseman Brextyn Kamaha’o Hong made a sensational play, giving a taste of what was to come in the sixth. Hong sprinted in with a slow roller that looked like it could lead to an infield single. Hong would have had a hard time throwing the ball across his body to first base, so he knew he could make a force ball at home. After making a bare-hand stop, Hong threw the ball home to Yang, who slammed home and protected the two-run lead.

FLASHING LEATHER — New Hampshire second baseman Patrick DeFrancesco made the first outstanding play of the game, getting the first out of the second inning. Brextyn Kamaha’o Hong hit a sharp grounder between first and second base that looked like it might lead to a single. Instead, DeFrancesco lunged forward, stopped the ball with a dive, then threw it with a good throw from his knees to beat Hong by a walk. New Hampshire right fielder William Briggs kept up the good defense an inning later, preventing a run with a sliding catch in right field. Briggs charged at Jet Pontes’ sinking line drive and caught the ball an inch or two before it hit the ground, preventing Kamalei Leynes-Santos from scoring.

WHAT THE ADULTS SAY–“We played against them until the last out and positioned ourselves well. They can be proud,” New Hampshire manager Dan DeFrancesco said this. “If you had told me at the beginning that we would be playing the West in a two-run game and had a chance to take a sixth-inning lead, I would have taken it 100 times out of 100.”

WHAT THE CHILDREN SAY–“I saw it immediately,” said Miller. “I saw him (the runner) out of the corner of my eye. It was very exciting.”

WHAT IT MEANS – Hawaii advances to the winners’ bracket and will play again Friday when it faces Hinsdale, Illinois. Illinois received a bye and the winner of that game will advance to the winners’ bracket semifinals. New Hampshire enters Saturday’s elimination game against the loser of Thursday night’s Pennsylvania-Texas game with momentum after hitting Hawaii so hard.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent West teammates greet catcher Matthew Yang during introductions before their game against New England on Wednesday.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent: West pitcher Evan Tavares throws a pitch in the first inning against New England.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Grounds continues to roll out the giant tarp to cover the Lamade Stadium field during a rain delay in the West’s game against New England on Wednesday.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette correspondent Gauge Pacheco of West celebrates after scoring one of two runs with a single in the first inning.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent New England League second baseman Patrick DeFrancesco throws to first base after knocking down a line drive on a single by West’s Brextyn Kamaha’o Hong in the first inning.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette correspondent Hayden Takshashi (19) and West’s Cam Kaneshiro (14) talk with their third baseman coach during a New England timeout in the first inning/

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette correspondent Hayden Takahashi of West gets a fist bump from Little League mascot Dugout during introductions before their game against New England on Wednesday.