Bowling Green senior Turner Nottmeier steals second base against visiting Logan County during the Purples’ 19-0 win in three innings Tuesday.

Bowling Green’s baseball team took a promising first step toward defending its Region 4 championship Tuesday.

The Purples walloped traditionally strong regional rival Logan County 19-0 in three innings in the season opener for both teams.

Bowling Green has the talent to reclaim that regional championship and the state tournament berth that goes with it this season, but first there’s the matter of escaping the always-tough District 14.

“There’s always one or two good teams from our district that don’t make it to the region each year,” South Warren coach Chris Gage said. “You’re talking about one or two of the higher-ranked teams in the state, really. That’s the way it goes.”

The Purples are banking on a stout pitching staff to carry the load this season. Seniors Patrick Forbes and Dawson Hall, both right-handers, headline a strong group.

“We have 10 seniors – some have played a lot and some are a little inexperienced,” Bowling Green coach Nathan Isenberg said. “Patrick Forbes, our Louisville commit, is one of the top three or four players in the state. He hit 93 (mph) in our scrimmage last week with Owensboro Catholic, so he’s a guy 88 to 92 and possibly better.”

Isenberg said Hall, a Western Kentucky commit, is also a hard thrower.

“He’s gonna run it up there as well,” Isenberg said. “I think he was at 88 (mph) in our scrimmage.”

Forbes will be the Purples’ starting shortstop when he’s not pitching. Last season, he batted .406, hit four home runs and was 15-of-16 on stolen-base attempts.

There’s plenty of returning experience around him. Blake Ginter (second base), Dom Davis (catcher), Spencer Newman (third base/utility), Nathaniel Roof (first base/pitcher), Turner Nottmeier (center field) and Dillon Maners (left field) are all returning starters.

“You’re really in high school only going to go as far as your pitching and defense can take you,” Isenberg said. “It’s just really hard to outscore people no matter how good your offense is.”

Warren East is coming off a regional appearance last season. The Raiders don’t start their season until next week when they visit Franklin-Simpson on Monday.

“We needed the extra time to practice anyway, so it worked out,” Warren East coach Wes Sanford said. “We don’t look great at practice right now. It’s worked out for what we need at the moment.”

The Raiders feature just one returning senior in Austin Comer, but the roster is heavy with juniors and sophomores including experienced players like Chase Carver, Drake Young, Tray Price and Caiden Murrell.

“We’ve got 18 guys who we feel like could really help us throughout the year. This is one of my deepest teams that I’ve ever had,” Sanford said. “We don’t have a superstar or anything of that nature. We just have a bunch of really good baseball players.”

South Warren is looking to return to the regional tournament after missing out last season despite a 25-11 overall mark. The Spartans feature a solid pitching staff led by Coleman House, Preston Parks and Riley Saxton with a solid veteran behind the plate in senior Trevor McNaughton.

“We’ve got some players,” Gage said. “Hopefully we’ll be competitive in the 14th District. Again, if you are competitive in the 14th District then you’re a pretty darn good team in the state of Kentucky.”

Greenwood opened its season with a 9-2 win over Butler County on Monday, followed by a 12-10 loss to Daviess County on Tuesday. The Gators stay busy, with a home game scheduled against Franklin-Simpson on Thursday.

“We’ve got three returning starters, and a lot of inexperience and question marks,” Greenwood coach Jason Jaggers said. “What we’re going to do over the next few weeks before our first district series is try to figure out what our best lineup is, who fits where best because we’ve got some positions that people are vying for and competing.”

Returning starters Bryson Brockman (center field), Rhett Dysholm (right field) and Caden Whittle (second base) figure to feature prominently this season, while Jaggers has also been pleased with Greenwood’s pitching so far.

Warren Central won’t open until March 28 with a home game against Allen County-Scottsville, and the Dragons are struggling with a small roster.

Warren Central coach Steven Albert expects it to be “a learning year” for his young roster. Andrew Huntsman, Aiden Compton and Ne Moo Paw are the most experienced returning Dragons.{&end}