Hays ? When the Lawrence Raiders play for the American Legion AAA state championship at 3 p.m. today, Tony Ice knows what a game of this magnitude means.

Ice, 82, probably has watched and coached more baseball than the current Raiders have played combined, so is he their good-luck charm?

“Well, I don’t really know about that,” said Ice, an assistant on brother Al’s staff the last time a Lawrence Legion team won a title, in 1964.

“These guys are really playing well right now, and I think they’ll have a real good chance tomorrow,” continued the soft-spoken Ice, whose smile said everything about what another title might mean for summer baseball in Lawrence.

If Saturday’s 9-3 victory over Derby at Larks Park was any indication, coach Carl Brooks — who played for Tony Ice’s 1965 team — said it would be hard for any team to beat the Raiders. Since the Raiders are 3-0 at the state tourney, they would have to lose twice before the title would slip away.

If the Raiders lose today, they would play again Monday.

“Well, we’ve gotten ourselves to this point,” Brooks said. “And I really think that the way we are playing, combined with the pitching situations for other teams, that it’s going to be hard for any team to take two from us. But we really would love to get it done today.”

The Raiders (38-10) won despite scoring fewer than 12 runs for the first time in a postseason game while fighting through four bases-loaded jams. Lawrence’s offense, which cranked out 22 hits in the first two games of the tournament, managed only eight Saturday.

But a big two-run home run by Tommy Mangino in the first inning combined with a nine-strikeout performance from Blake Dickson made sure the Raiders had a chance.

Lawrence pitcher Blake Dickson throws to a Derby batter during the semifinals of the American Legion Class AAA state tournament. The Raiders won, 9-3, Saturday in Hays and will play today for the title.

Even after relief pitcher Kyle Unruh gave up a single that scored Derby’s first run in the seventh, he got out of the inning with a double play.

The Raider offense added four runs of insurance in the top of the eighth. Matt Lane led off with a deep triple to center, and Dominick Harrell followed Lane with a double down the left-field line. David Arndt flew out to center, but Harrell tagged up and moved to third and scored when Kyle Unruh reached on an error.

An Andrew Pyle double scored Unruh, Derek Bailey scored Pyle on a single, and the Raiders had a 9-1 lead. The extra runs gave the Raiders breathing room, as Derby loaded the bases again in both the eighth and ninth, but mustered only two more runs.

“Who knows, maybe this was our luck game,” Brooks said. “But to think that our team was going to keep getting 22 hits a game was ridiculous.”

And now, a state title is within the Raiders’ grasp.

“Anything’s possible,” said Pyle, who went 2-for-3 Saturday with two runs and two RBIs. “But we’re here for one reason, and we’re not going to let up when we’re this close to our goal.”

Dickson didn’t hesitate when asked if the Raiders deserved the crown.

“We all want this thing for us, for Carl, and I’m sure even Tony could handle one more,” Dickson said.