BANGOR – About the only suspense left in Sunday’s late game at the Senior League World Series was whether the two teams would set a record for pitching changes.

The Latin American champions from Falcon, Venezuela, scored five runs in the first and – 140 minutes, 13 runs, nine pitching changes, and 51/2 innings later – walked off the Mansfield Stadium turf with a 12-6 victory over the U.S. Central champs from Niles, Mich.

SLWS defending champ Venezuela has today off, but Niles will take on 1-0 East champ Freehold Township, N.J., at 1 p.m. in pool B play.

Venezuela’s offensive output aside, it was the effort by Falcon starting pitcher Hugo Yedra that made the difference in this game.

“I think he was throwing harder in the third and fourth innings than he did in the first and that kind of kept us shut out,” said Niles manager Bill Coar. “It was his speed more than anything else.

“It takes awhile to get used to a fastball pitcher and we didn’t get used to him fast enough.”

The righthanded Yedra was shaky at first, walking the first two batters and three total in the first inning, when Niles scored twice to take an early lead.

Over the next three innings, he issued just two walks and (more importantly) no hits while striking out six batters.

“He was pitching a little irregular because he is tired from pitching so much ball lately,” Falcon manager Osmar Reyes said through an interpreter. “Our pitcher wasn’t as strong as usual, but he was better later in the game.”

Falcon built an 11-3 lead through the first four innings, thanks largely to a lineup that was producing hits up and down the order. No. 5 hitter Johan Luquez led the way with three singles, two RBIs and a run in four at-bats. The only time he was retired was on an illegal contact call when he hit the ball outside the batter’s box.

Falcon’s only other multiple hitter was Marcos Pina, who went 2-for-3 with two singles and an RBI.

Seven of Falcon’s nine starters had at least one hit. The team batted .407 with 11 hits in 27 at-bats and put further pressure on Niles by drawing six walks – five of which came around to score.

“Our pitching was not quite on tonight, giving up some bases on balls,” said Coar, who made six pitching changes to try and keep most of his pitchers eligible to pitch today. “We weren’t hitting the corners or the corners weren’t getting called.”

Niles made it interesting in the seventh by plating three runs on two hits and a costly Falcon outfield error, but it wasn’t enough.

Jesse McCombs’ double in the sixth was the only extra-base hit for Niles, which could only generate four other hits.

Falcon’s Oswar Murillo pitched 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief after Yedra departed in the fifth.

LATIN AMERICA 12, U.S. CENTRAL 6

(Pool B)

Niles, Mich. Falcon, Venezuela

ab r h bi ab r h bi

Gladden,lf 2 2 0 0 Ed.Prmra,cf 3 1 0

Johnson,c 2 2 0 0 Alvarado,cf 1 0 0

Ort,3b-ss-p 2 0 0 0 Chrno,2b-ss 2 3 0

Gross, 3b 2 1 1 0 Pina, ss-p 3 2 1

Pompey,1b 2 0 1 0 Rojas, c 3 1 1

Briand,cf-p 1 0 0 0 Luquez,1b 4 1 2

Rdnbch, rf 1 0 0 1 Er.Prmra,lf 2 1 1

Stroud, 2b 2 1 1 1 Zea, lf 1 0 0 0

McCmbs,ss 4 0 1 1 Gonzlez, rf 2 3 1

Brwly,2b-rf 2 0 0 0 Yedra, p 1 0 2

Udell, rf 2 0 1 0 Murillo,p-lf 2 0 0

Coar, cf-1b 2 0 0 0 Prince, 3b 3 0 3

Knisely,p-rf 2 0 0 0

Jackson, cf 1 0 0 0

Totals 27 6 5 3 Totals 27 12 11 11

U.S. Central 210 000 3 – 6

Latin America 541 101 x – 12

E-Stroud, McCombs; Er. Primera; DP-Pina-Chirino-Luquez; LOB-Central 7; Latin 8; 2B-McCombs; 3B-Gonzalez; SF-Yedra, Rojas, Prince; S-Er. Primera; SB-Er. Primera, Chirino

U.S. Central IP H R ER BB SO

Knisely (L,0-1) 1 3 6 4 4 0

Reidenbach 2/3 3 3 3 0 0

McCombs 2/3 1 1 1 2 0

Knisely 1 2/3 2 1 1 0 0

Briand 2 2 1 1 0 0

Latin America

Yedra (W,1-0) 4 1 3 2 5 6

Murillo 2 1/3 2 0 0 2 1

Er.Primera 1/3 2 3 1 0 1

Pina 1/3 0 0 0 0 0

HBP-; WP-; BK-; PB-.

T-2:20; A-500 (est.)