Semoball at baseball state championships

Posted Monday, May 30, 2016, at 4:20 PM

O’FALLON, Mo. — Batting in the nine-hole in his final varsity game, senior center fielder Isiah Berry delivered a walkoff RBI single in the bottom of the seventh inning to give the Scott City baseball team a 5-4 win over South Callaway in the Class 3 third-place game Thursday at CarShield Field.

The Rams held a 4-2 lead, but freshman Peyton Leeper tied the game at 4-all for the Bulldogs in the top of the seventh on a two-run homer to right-center.

Scott City (23-8), which dropped a 12-1 decision against Mountain Grove in a state semifinal on Wednesday, started off the bottom of the seventh when senior Ty Wilthong reached on an error, a ball that fell out of the glove of a trailing left fielder. Wilthong was replaced by freshman courtesy runner John Auer, who advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by junior Caden Hillemann. Berry drove Auer in for the game-winning run.

Senior Drew Short went 3-for-4 with two RBIs in his final varsity game. He drove in senior Hunter Copeland with a one-out single to give the Rams a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first and had a two-out, RBI single that extended their lead to 4-2 in the bottom of the sixth.

Both starting pitchers received no-decisions, combining for 16 strikeouts and 15 walks.

Senior Jordan Kluesner got the start for Scott City, giving up four runs (two earned) on six hits with four strikeouts and seven walks. He was lifted in favor of sophomore Dakota Talley, who entered following Leeper’s home run in the seventh. Talley threw a scoreless inning of relief to pick up the win on the mound, allowing one hit with a strikeout.

Sophomore Kaden Helsel started for South Callaway (25-7) and went six innings. He scattered five hits and allowed four runs (all earned) with 12 strikeouts and eight walks. Sophomore Dylan Lepper picked up the pitching loss for the Bulldogs in 1/3 of an inning of relief, allowing one unearned run on one hit.

A complete story on this game will be available later.

Junior Cole Nichols finished 3-for-4 with two RBIs and threw a complete game on the mound, leading the Bell City baseball team to its second straight Class 1 championship with a 7-2 win over New Covenant Academy on Wednesday at CarShield Field.

Nichols’ two-out, two-run single in the bottom of the second gave the Cubs a 3-0 lead before junior Austin Hicks drove in three more with a double in the bottom of the fourth.

Nichols led off the bottom of the sixth with a triple and scored on a sacrifice fly by Nate Finney to cap the scoring for Bell City (24-3).

The junior right-handed hurler finished with five strikeouts and three walks to secure his seventh straight pitching win, allowing two earned runs on eight hits.

Matthew Searson took the loss for New Covenant (24-5). He went 3 1/3 innings and gave up five runs (three earned) on five hits with no strikeouts and one walk.

Silas Siebert (2-for-4) and Joshua Isbell (2-for-4) led the Warriors at the plate.

New Covenant 001 010 0 — 2 8 2

Bell City 120 301 x — 7 8 0

WP — Cole Nichols. LP — Matthew Searson. 2B — Joshua Isbell (NC), Austin Hicks (BC). 3B — Nichols (BC). Multiple hits — New Covenant: Silas Siebert 2-4, Isbell 2-4; Bell City: Nichols 3-4, Bobby Wright 2-3.

The Scott City baseball team signals its official return to the Class 3 final four at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday against Mountain Grove at CarShield Field in O'Fallon, Missouri.

The Rams come into the game with a record of 22-7. They rolled past New Madrid County Central 19-7 in a state sectional before edging out Clearwater 3-0 in the state quarterfinals to return to the final four for the second straight year.

Through it all, the Rams have maintained a youthful approach, and you can read about it here.

For live updates on today's game, be sure to follow @semoballTrent on Twitter.

The Bell City baseball team fell into a four-run deficit in the bottom of the first inning but rallied back to defeat Silex 5-4 in a Class 1 semifinal Tuesday at CarShield Field.

The defending state champion Cubs advance to face New Covenant in the state championship at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. New Covenant shut out Northwest (Hughesville) in the second semifinal.

Junior Austin Hicks picked up his ninth pitching win of the season for Bell City (23-3), allowing four unearned runs on five hits in his complete-game performance. He finished with eight strikeouts and no walks.

Senior Nate Finney, who finished 3-for-4, batted in the game-winning run for the Cubs in the top of the sixth, scoring Cole Nichols on a single to left.

Junior Jesse Smith finished 2-for-3 with a game-high two RBIs for Bell City, while junior Bobby Wright went 2-for-4 with an RBI.

Junior Jacob Stolle took the loss on the mound for Silex (14-7) in 2 2/3 innings of relief. He gave up one earned run on one hit with two walks and no strikeouts. Junior Colton Groshong had two strikeouts and one walk in a no-decision start for the Owls. He scattered nine hits and allowed four runs (all earned).

Stolle led Silex at the plate, finishing 3-for-3 with two doubles and an RBI.

Bell City 010 211 0 — 5 10 2

Silex 400 000 0 — 4 5 1

WP — Austin Hicks. LP — Jacob Stolle. 2B — Stolle 2 (S). Multiple hits — Bell City: Nate Finney 3-4, Bobby Wright 2-4, Jesse Smith 2-3; Silex: Stolle 3-3.

The Bell City baseball team will have to wait a day to finish its Class 1 semifinal.

The defending state champion Cubs were in the middle of the first inning when a thunderstorm rolled into the area Monday and halted their final four opener against Silex at CarShield Field.

Bell City (22-3) and Silex (14-6) will resume play at 10 a.m. Tuesday, while the second semifinal between New Covenant Academy (22-4) and Hughesville Northwest (20-8) will follow at 12:30 p.m.

In order to keep the state championships on schedule, MSHSAA officials decided to axe the Class 1 and Class 2 third-place games. The rest of the championships will remain as scheduled.

Bell City’s Nate Finney hit a two-out single to center field in the top of the first, but a strikeout left him stranded at second base. The game was put on hold when officials spotted lightning in the area shortly thereafter.

Austin Hicks was set to take the mound for the Cubs but never threw a pitch. He enters the game with a 7-1 record. On the other side, Owls starting pitcher Colton Groshong carries a 2-1 mark into the final four.

The Bell City baseball team continues its quest to defend the Class 1 state championship with a state semifinal at 4:30 p.m. Monday against Silex at CarShield Field in O'Fallon, Missouri.

The Cubs enter the game with a record of 22-3. They defeated Oran 4-1 to win their second straight Class 1 District 2 championship before knocking off Gideon 15-0 in a state sectional. A 3-0, nine-inning win over host Bismarck in the state quarterfinals sent Bell City into its second straight final four.

The Cubs have shown poise in their return to the state final four, and you can read about it here. Also be sure to read up on the team's newest fan, who's been an inspiration in this year's postseason run.

For live updates on today's game, be sure to follow @semoballTrent on Twitter.