The three district-10 Babe Ruth all-star teams in the state tournament, all hailing from Demopolis, have begun their tourney play in three different cities across the state in hopes of bringing home a state championship.

League organizer Rob Pearson said the groups all have a chance of winning the coveted honor and proceeding to their regionals. He said the three teams are made up of some of the best talent in the region and should be able to hold their own against teams from across the state.

Pearson said one of the biggest reasons for the continued success by the all-star groups over the past several years is the constant increase in participation by local teens looking to compete during the summer. He said the increase raises the level of normal season play for the teams before they enter the all-star portion of summer play.

He said the groups are at the level of play and talent that is necessary to make a run in the state tournament, so he expects good things. He said, out of the three teams that are traveling to the tournament, there is a definite possibility that one will walk away with a state title, though he said he couldn&8217;t speculate which one.

As of yesterday evening, two of the three groups have already faced off on the diamond &8212; one winning and another falling. The under-13 group wrapped up their first game with a, 4-0, win

against Brewton in Huntsville. The under-14 team fell in their first match up in Sylacauga, 7-6.

Pearson said the game was the first in the four match ups the groups will face in the pool-play portion of the tournament, so one loss doesn&8217;t knock the team out of contention. He said under-14 and under-13 teams will continue pool play through Friday, before the final portion of the tournament for pool winners on Saturday. The under-15 group didn&8217;t start until today, so their pool play will run through Monday, with the championship game on Tuesday.