NEELYVILLE — Depending on how you figure it, Neelyville returns anywhere from seven to 11 starters. “We lost two seniors that played quite a bit but we started 10-11 of these guys at some point last year, so we’ve got a good chunk returning, and then we got a pretty good freshmen class coming in,” Neelyville coach Tyler Thompson said. “We’ve got to obviously get better on the mound from where we were last year, but pretty much everyone who pitched last year has varsity experience this year.”...

Like any shopper, the Poplar Bluff Mules football program couldn’t pass up a good deal and will sport new jerseys this season. “We were talking about getting new uniforms and we were going to try to incorporate a new set into what we already had,” Mules coach David Sievers said. “Adidas had a real sweet deal so we decided to jump in with both feet.”...

PIEDMONT — Clearwater returns seven starters from a team that went undefeated last fall and won the Ozark Foothills Conference Tournament. However, the two starters they lost were big losses. Two of the Tigers’ four seniors last season were Heath Ayers and Jesse Holmes, who were the team’s top two pitchers as Clearwater went 12-0 and outscored opponents 141-18...

In some regards, Cape Catfish pitcher Bryan McNeely had a typically solid outing in Tuesday’s Prospect League Championship Series Game 3 against Chillicothe at Capaha Field.

Cornerstone love: An important quality or feature in which a foundation is based upon. That was the topic of choice of Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz following Saturday's scrimmage at Houck Field.

If Southeast Missouri State senior linebacker Zach Hall wasn’t going “ga-ga” over being honored with numerous awards AFTER his spectacular junior season, then you shouldn’t be shocked that he isn’t overly concerned about receiving preseason awards BEFORE the Redhawks have even played a game this year. “It was just so fun,” Hall said of the 2018 season.

Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz celebrated his 46th birthday earlier this week on Aug. 5, but his best gift might come two months later on Oct. 5. Injured redshirt junior tight end Austin Crump may be able to play by the time the Redhawks enter Ohio Valley Conference play, according to Matukewicz, which would be Oct. 5 against Tennessee Tech...

The impact of Southeast Missouri State offensive coordinator Jeromy McDowell had on the Redhawk program in his first season in 2018 was statistically incredible. His offense set four school records including points scored (482), points per game (37.1), touchdowns (63), and total plays (891).