Little League World Series begins

Montana had never had a team in the Little League World Series. A couple of weeks ago, 12-year-old Andy Maehl asked his Billings coach if their team was ready to make history. “He kept asking me the question every five minutes,” coach Mark Kieckbusch said Wednesday in recalling the talk with the catcher at the regional tournament. “I thought, ‘What are you, crazy?’ ” Prophetic? Yes. Crazy? Not so much. The mashers from Montana have made it all the way to South Williamsport, Penn., joining 15 other teams hoping to make the triumphant trot around the Lamade Stadium warning track with a World Series championship banner. Montana plays Rapid City, S.D., (ESPN, noon) in one of four games today. – Associated Press