BG East's Patrick Forbes (3) makes contact Thursday, July 6, 2017, during their 6-2 win over Owensboro Southern in the 11- and 12-year-olds District 1 Tournament championship at Jim Roberts Community Park in Franklin. (Bac Totrong/photo@bgdailynews.com)

The Bowling Green East 11-and-12-year-old Little League All-Stars will look for a three-peat when the team opens play in the state tournament on Saturday in London.

It’s another step toward a possible third straight trip to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa., although – like the district tournament – BG manager Rick Kelley said the team is trying not to think too far ahead.

“We’ve tried to take those expectations off of the players because we all realize what a long shot it is to get to the World Series and what an astronomical long shot it is to go three times in a row to the World Series,” Kelley said. “We’ve taken that pressure off the players and they are just out there to enjoy themselves and have fun and do the best that they can.”

Bowling Green went undefeated in district play but needed a home run against Owensboro Southern in extra innings in pool play, and then had to pull away late against Warren County North in the semis and Owensboro Southern in the finals to clinch a spot in the state tournament.

Kelley said his team really matured during the district tournament and he feels pretty good about its chances.

“You are always concerned with how they will react in pressure situations,” Kelley said. “You never know how 12-year-olds are going to handle those situations. Many of them will tend to fold in those situations and some of them will step up and accept that pressure. These guys really did. It wasn’t just one person that did it, it was several.

“They came through with some clutch performances in tight situations, so I think that gave them a ton of confidence going into the state tournament.”

Kelley said East got timely hits, including a pinch-hit homer from Gray Price against Owensboro Southern in the championship, and the pitching depth proved to be key. That depth will grow a little more in the state tournament with Caden Whittle cleared to do some pitching.

Bowling Green’s pool includes Paintsville, which East opens against at 4 p.m. CDT Saturday, Glasgow and Nelson County.

Lexington Eastern, which won the 11-year-old state title last year, is one of four teams in the other pool.

The top two teams in each pool advance to Tuesday’s semifinals, with the winner of Wednesday’s championship advancing to the Great Lakes Region in Indianapolis next month.

Kelley said it is a tough pool, but he thinks BG East will be in good shape if it can get through it.

“Lexington Eastern is the prohibitive favorite,” Kelley said. “They are probably going to have an easy ride on the other side of the pool, so it is really important for us to come out of our pool as the number one seed – yet we have three teams in our pool that have historically been strong teams out of their district and have been to the state tournament many times.

“We will have our hands full with all three teams. We don’t have a pushover in any of those games. Our challenge is pretty strong. We just have to see how we can handle it and maneuver our pitching to where we have as much available as possible, yet be set up to have as much available if we get to the semifinals or finals if we are so fortunate.”{&end}