Tennessee team makes Little League final

Zach McWilliams hit a grand slam in the fourth inning, R.J. Moore struck out five in two relief innings and Goodlettsville, Tennessee beat Bowling Green, Kentucky, 8-4 on Thursday night for a spot in the U.S. championship game of the Little League Series.

McWilliams’ smash over the center-field wall gave Tennessee a 6-4 lead. Moore struck out the side in the fifth and he retired Devin Obee with two on in the sixth for the final out. Tennessee plays Endwell, New York, on Saturday. Earlier, Seum Kwon had two home runs and three RBIs, Sangheon Park struck out nine and South Korea beat Mexico 7-0 to advance to the international championship game. South Korea will play Panama on Saturday.

AUTO RACING

Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis will hold the Craig Guy Stock Special on Saturday night, with gates opening at 6 p.m., hot laps at 6:30 and races at 7:30 on the quarter-mile, high-banked dirt oval. Classes include Memphis Auto Radio 305 wing sprints, Pull A Part late models, G & S Electric modifieds, Black Oak Gin 600 mini-sprints, and the Parts Plus Riverside Stocks Craig Guy Special. General-admission tickets for 12 and older are $12, ages 6-11 are $5, and 5 and younger are free. Pit passes are $25.

TENNIS

Elina Svitolina advanced to the Connecticut Open semifinals at New Haven on Thursday with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Olympics doubles champion Elena Vesnina. Svitolina will face Johanna Larsson today. Larsson upset second-seeded Roberta Vinci of Italy 7-6 (9), 6-1. Defending champion Petra Kvitova beat Ekaterina Makarova 6-3, 6-1 and will face top-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland in the semifinals. Radwanska beat Kirstin Flipkens of Belgium 6-1, 6-4 . ... John Millman upset top-seeded Richard Gasquet 7-5, 6-3 in the Winston-Salem (North Carolina) Open quarterfinals. Millman advanced to his first ATP World Tour semifinal. He will face 16th-seeded Pablo Carreno Busta of Spain, a 6-4, 6-3 winner over 12th-seeded Alexander Kuznetsov of Russia.