Harlem Knocks Out Aptos, 5-2

Alibay Barkley and Andrew Diaz homered in a three-run fourth inning and Harlem, N.Y., defeated Aptos, Calif., 5-2, on Tuesday to clinch a spot in the U.S. semifinals at the Little League World Series.

Barkley brought Harlem within, 2-1, with his homer to left. Fernando Frias reached base on a fielder’s choice and then Diaz gave Harlem a 3-2 lead with the high fly to left field that landed just behind the hedge, 235 feet from home plate.

Jeremy Lopez hit a two-run homer to center in the fifth to pad the lead.

Harlem will play Worchester, Mass., in a U.S. semifinal Thursday.

In other games:

Louisville, Ky., defeated Clemmons, N.C., 4-2, and will play Fort Worth in a U.S. semifinal today. Yoosuke Katoh struck out seven as Sendai, Japan defeated Curacao, Netherlands Antilles, 5-0, to win its pool. Agana, Guam defeated Regina, Canada, 12-7, and will play Japan in an international semifinal today.

Dhahran, Saudi Arabia held on for a 6-5 victory over Valencia, Venezuela, but didn’t advance from its pool, losing on tiebreakers. Venezuela won the pool and will play Netherlands Antilles in an international semifinal Thursday.