SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. Vans Shoes Clearance . -- Its not easy to advance to the Little League World Series. Bowling Green Eastern coach Scott Kelley knows that much.Its tougher for him to think his players would battle through the Great Lakes Region for the second straight year and find themselves in position to win a title again. But here the Kentucky kids are with a roster dotted with veterans -- an almost unattainable luxury.Its been a journey, Kelley said as his players ate an early dinner at a picnic Wednesday, hours before play begins in the 70th Little League World Series.One that picks up where it left off last year for infielder Spencer Newman and pitchers Devin Obee and Carson Myers. All three were on the Bowling Green team that went 2-2 last year.Now, theyre the old guys who started last year and helped lead Bowling Green to a 3-0 romp through the Great Lakes Regional into the 16-team championship field in South Williamsport.Both Devin and Carson pitched last year, Kelley said. That gives them that advantage of having been on the mound and in the spotlight in that situation. So that certainly helps. I think in terms of those three being leaders on the team, can kind of calm the nerves.It also helps that their teammates already got a taste of playing inside Howard J. Lamade Stadium where the finals will be played on Aug. 28. Bowling Green beat Essexville, Michigan, in their regional final in a game that was moved 10 hours east to the championship stadium after bad weather forced the games postponement in Indianapolis.But the postponement may also have a negative effect. Bowling Green might have to rely on one of its veterans early, too as ace pitcher Isaiah Head will be unavailable after pitching Mondays game.Hes throwing in the mid-70s, and throwing from three different angles and his offspeed has been pretty good, Kelley said. And hes been accurate. His strike percentage has been 75 percent, so hes been lights out for us. We were going all out to win that game and not worry about Friday.MORE THAN SPECTATORS NOWMaine-Endwell, Mid-Atlantic champions from Endwell, New York, is the closest thing to a local team competing in the tournament.Scott Rushs players know what its like to be the local favorite, too. Theyve bonded with last years runner-up, Red Land of Lewisberry, Pennsylvania, the team that ended Maine-Endwells season a year ago. Red Lands players reached out to wish their regional rivals luck after Rushs players did the same last year.Six Maine-Endwell players remain from last years team that fell to Red Land.I think theyve all dreamed about it since theyve been five, Rush said. Theyve come just about every year to watch games. They were one step from being here, so they were obviously hopeful to make it here again this year.JAPANS DOMINANCEChofu Little League coaches and players celebrated with strangers who helped them take their team pictures on Wednesday.But the Tokyo team hopes to celebrate alone next weekend.Manager Koji Yamashita smiled when reminded that Tokyo teams have won four of the last five Little League Series titles. Hed like to see his hard-hitting bunch rake home Japans 11th championship a year after Kitasuna Little League beat Pennsylvanias ted Land 18-11 in the highest scoring final ever. Chofu looks like it has the talent to do so having averaged 14.25 runs per game while outscoring opponents 57-6 in their qualifying regional.I like that pace (winning four of last five), Yamashita said through a translator. They have a long life after this but it is a nice experience for them. We do our best all the time.TEXAS, CALIFORNIA LOOKING TO BREAK STREAKSTeams from Pennsylvania, California and Texas have been the most represented U.S. states in the field but aside from Red Lands deep run last year, none have won a title since Ocean View-Huntingdon Beach did so in 2011.Park View from Chula Vista, Calif., which won it all in 2009, will try to end that after advancing from the West Regional. Southwest Regional champion McAllister Park American out of San Antonio will try to end Texas 50-year championship drought.NEW AND FAMILIAR TEAMSLike Maine-Endwell, six other teams are making their LLWS debuts. First-time participants in the U.S. bracket include Johnston, Iowa; Warwick North, Rhode Island; and Bend North, Oregon. In the international bracket teams making their debuts are East Seoul, South Korea; Hills, Sydney, Australia; and San Nicolas, Nuevo Leon, Mexico.Goodlettsville, Tennessee, qualified for the first time since making a finals appearance in 2012 while Vancouver, British Columbia; Willemstad, Curacao; Emilia Italy; and Aguadulce, Panama have all appeared before.LOWER AGE CUTOFFOlder players wont be able to play in Little Leagues showcase event much longer. The league announced last fall it would move its age determination date from Dec. 31 to Aug. 31 for all its baseball divisions. It means this is the first of the last two years 13-year-olds will be eligible. Vans Old Skool Cheap . 4 Villanova with a 96-68 drubbing on Monday. Wragge hit 9-of-14 from behind the arc, matching Kyle Korvers school record for 3-pointers in a game set in 2003, as Creighton (16-3, 6-1 Big East broke a conference record with 21 treys in the rout. Cheap Vans Shoes . Barcelonas entertaining victory ensured the defending Spanish champions retained their share of the league lead with Atletico Madrid two rounds ahead of their meeting in the capital. Real Madrid needed a late goal by substitute Jese Rodriguez to earn a 3-2 victory at Valencia to stay in third place and three points behind its title rivals. http://www.vanssalestore.com/vans-sk8-clearance.html .5 seconds to play in the game, Kevin Love never stopped believing that they would come out of there with a win. TAMPA, Fla. -- Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Doug Martin hasnt played since suffering a hamstring injury in Week 2, but the two-time Pro Bowler is hopeful he may see some playing time Sunday against the Chicago Bears.It felt real good, Martin said of returning to practice this week. It felt real good. I did some individual work. My legs were pretty good. My hamstrings were pretty good. I didnt really feel anything. Im pretty optimistic for this coming game. Hopefully I can get in, but its up to the medical doctors.I hope Im ready by that time, but well still [be] seeing if Im able to go at full speed, and thats why Im taking so many precautions and Im seeing where we go from there, but Im hoping I can.Coach Dirk Koetter is hopeful, too, but it wont be his decision.That wont be a coachs call, Koetter said. When a guys been out, thats a medical call and a player call.Martin was limited in practice Wednesday and did some agility work, including jumping over cones. He also worked on his cuts, changing direction and catching passes from running backs coach Tim Spencer. He did as much as he could away from the team to try to keep up his conditioning.On Thursday, he participated in receiving drills with the quarterbacks. He leapt and caught a pass in an outstretched position and caught two short passes across his body. He showed good lateral quickness with the ball in his hands and the ability to change direction, as well as start and stop. His cuts were sudden and decisive.Shape-wise, Ive been running with the traineers here on my own time, so I think Im in pretty good shape, said Martin, who rushed for 1,402 yards last season, second most in the NFL, along with six touchdowns. Vans Shoes Sale. He tacked on 271 receiving yards and a touchdown catch.Im getting there. Im getting to that point. Its been kind of frustrating, but Im just going to take all the proper steps to get back on the field, Martin said. I do feel good. I feel really good.The Bucs have had four running backs go down with injuries this season and are now 3-5, something that has been hard for Martin to watch from the sideline. He even attempted to come back before the Week 5 game against the Carolina Panthers but reinjured his hamstring before the game, resulting in even more time away.Its been real frustrating, Martin said. The season, its not how I wanted it really to start. The injury was unexpected, but thats what comes with the game. To see all the other guys go down was hard as well. But next guy up. We have a lot of confidence in the running backs who are playing this week.Center Joe Hawley is thrilled Martin is on his way back.You kind of forget how important he is to the team, Hawley said. I told him the other day, I was watching the Bears game from last year, and the way he runs and hits the holes -- its a different level than most running backs. Hes a game-changer. Getting him back is gonna be huge -- a huge boost to this team. ' ' '