BRISTOL, Conn. — The Gray-New Gloucester 12U Little League baseball team is representing the state of Maine at New England's Little League Baseball regionals in Bristol, Connecticut.
The team is two wins away from punching their ticket to Williamsport, Pennsylvania, for the Little League World Series.
Yesterday, the team beat New Hampshire 3-0. Kayden Oliver struck out 10 batters, only giving up one hit in his 6.1-inning outing. Caleb Barker hit two runs in, knocking in the game-winning RBIs.
"It felt great driving two runs in your regionals game. It's nothing, nothing through the whole game, and pretty intense through it," Barker said. "We finally score some runs, you get a little breathing room."
Head coach Brad Shelley said his team is the farthest a Gray-New Gloucester Little League team has ever made it into postseason. No other team had ever won districts, let alone a state title.
"The effort these boys have put in—we've told them all along they have the potential to do it. They have the team to do it. One game at a time. One opponent at a time," Shelley said.
The team will play Massachusetts at 9 a.m. Monday and will be aired on ESPN. If they advance, they'll play in the New England Championships Thursday primetime on ESPN.
"The opportunity to come down here to Bristol to represent the state of Maine is very exciting for these boys. They have a lot of pride, and the community has been behind them the whole way," Shelley said.