^ That is true, but the team they took a beating from in the Sports Festival was very close to that age group as well (the oldest one must've been like 14). I call that progress, even if it implies winning against a younger team. :p
In a similar way, Gatas got their asses handed to them in their debut game precisely because there weren't any other teams in their age and category: iirc, the Sphere League did not exist until some time later.