So close, but just up short.

The Northlake Little League junior fastpitch all-stars of Kenmore finished second at the state tournament last weekend.

The 12- through 14-year-olds, who won the District 8 title and three consecutive state games, lost two straight to finish the tourney.

Wins at state were 14-7 over District 7, 5-3 over Glenwood and 6-5 over Columbia.

“It was a can-do attitude,” said manager Jerry Holmes. “We’ve seen them have ups and downs. We played every inning 0-0 — we just had to win one inning at a time.”

He added that the team prided itself on learning lessons each day and “pulling the handle” to flush out mistakes and move on.

“We maximized our opportunities,” Holmes said. “It was a positively oriented team.”

The team featured one 12-year-old, three 14-year-olds and 10 13-year-olds, so returners will be aplenty next season.

“They’ll be ready to cause havoc,” Holmes said with a laugh.

The team is: Jacqueline Holmes, Carole Crotteau, Lindsay Starostka, Sam Wagner, Stephanie Soule, Baylee Hall, Keeley Walsh, Allison Vick, Pearle Maki, Alicia Kelly, Abigail Bittle, Elena Simons, Brianna Logan and Emily Gordon.

Manager is Jerry Holmes and coaches are Mark Wagner and Scott Fusco.