SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. -- Dave Anderson knew that curveballs were the way to beat the team from Harlem, N.Y. His California team just couldn't throw them all the time.

	Andrew Diaz's home run gave Harlem a 3-2 lead in the fourth inning.

Alibay Barkley, Andrew Diaz and Jeremy Lopez each sent fastballs over the fence as Harlem beat Aptos 5-2 on Tuesday to clinch a spot in the U.S. semifinals at the Little League World Series.

"They're very powerful -- you can't throw them fastballs," said Anderson, the Aptos manager. "We threw them three fastballs, and they hit them out. That's our fault."

Barkley brought Harlem within a run at 2-1 with his homer in the fourth inning. Fernando Frias reached base on a fielder's choice.

"My coach told me to keep my head down and expect a curveball," Barkley said. "I wasn't expecting a fastball, but that's what they threw me, and I went with the pitch."

Diaz gave Harlem a 3-2 lead with the high fly that landed just behind the hedge in left field -- 235 feet from home plate.

As Diaz trotted ran toward first base, he waved good-bye toward the left field. Before he tagged home, Diaz high-stepped down the third-base line.

Diaz's antic drew the ire of Harlem manager Morris McWilliams, who warned his players they would be ejected if their showboating continued.

After the game, McWilliams played down Diaz's behavior, saying it was just a 12-year-old being overexuberant. He said he addressed it with Diaz and considered it a dead issue.

Lopez hit a two-run homer to center in the fifth to pad the lead -- without any similar display.

Harlem (2-1) finished second in its pool and will play Worcester, Mass., on Thursday in the semifinals. Louisville, Ky., and Fort Worth, Texas, play Wednesday in the first U.S. semifinal.

In other games Tuesday, it was: Sendai, Japan 5, Netherlands Antilles 0; Agana, Guam 12, Regina Saskatchewan 7; Dharan, Saudi Arabia 6, Valencia, Venezuela 5; and Louisville, Ky. 4, Clemmons, N.C. 2.

Aptos (1-2) had a chance to tie it in the bottom of the sixth, with runners on second and third, but Javier Lopez (2-0) ended it with his 11th strikeout.

"His focus us just unbelievable," Harlem manager Morris McWilliams said of Javier Lopez. "It's kind of a joke we have with Javier -- we tell him it's OK to smile."

Tyler Raymond's double off the wall in center in the fourth gave Aptos (1-2) a 2-0 lead.

Among those in the stands supporting the Harlem team was Danny Almonte, the pitcher who became a star last year after throwing a perfect game for the Rolando Paulino Little League of the Bronx, N.Y., but who was later found to be too old to play.

Japan 5, Netherlands Antilles 0
Yoosuke Katoh struck out seven and hit a two-run double for Japan (3-0), which won the pool and plays Guam on Wednesday in the first international semifinal.

Netherlands Antilles (2-1) was the first team to get a hit off Japan and will play Venezuela in Thursday's semifinal.

Guam 12, Canada 7
Hosea Ware, Brandon Rosario and Samuel Roberto hit home runs as Guam (2-1) scored all its runs in the top of the sixth.

Ryan Stevenson's sacrifice fly and two Guam errors helped Canada (0-3) score three runs in the bottom of the inning.

Saudi Arabia 6, Venezuela 5
Craig Lumpa's two-run single in the fifth scored the go-ahead run for Saudi Arabia (2-1), which lost out in the tiebreakers and will not advance.

Venezuela (2-1) won the pool despite losing its final game.

Kentucky 4, North Carolina 2
Ethan Henry and Casey Jordan drove in all the runs in a three-run third, and Henry scored on a passed ball in the fifth for an insurance run for Kentucky (3-0).

Robbie Scott's two-run double in the fourth brought North Carolina (0-3) within a run, 3-2.