Here are the Springfield area high school baseball teams getting hot at the right time
Postseason high school baseball is just a few weeks away and a handful of teams are separating themselves from others as capable of going on deep postseason runs. Here are the teams we're keeping a close eye on late in the year.
Ash Grove
After a perfect season resulting in a championship in 2023, the Pirates have had a few bumps this year but shouldn't be counted out as a team that can make a deep Class 1 run. They've played a smaller schedule and have had stretches where they've put up big runs but the pitching hasn't been as dominant as it was a year ago, going from 2.2 runs per game to seven this year. If some pitching can get figured out over the next two weeks, against a weaker part of their schedule, they'll be a tough outing.
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Forsyth
Tristan Hunter has been the name to know for the Panthers as he's etched his name as the most dominant pitcher in southwest Missouri. Still, he can't pitch every day and the offense has been great all season for a Forsyth team that's capable of being its best team since 2000 when it finished fourth in the state. The offense has been led by none other than Hunter batting third in the lineup who hit two home runs last week in a game against Skyline. Braxton Gross has been solid on the mound and in the middle of the lineup.
Logan-Rogersville
The Wildcats remain Class 4's top team behind one of its deepest pitching staffs during their recent years of being among the area's elite teams. Ross Lawrence is the most known as the Wildcats' ace and three-hole batter. They've benefited from the California move-in of the DeSanti brothers (Ethan and Shane) and freshman Nate Eakins' rise. This deep lineup features plenty of firepower starting to get hot at the right time with Jackson Rousey and Teagan Trent also finding their grooves.
More: How does Logan-Rogersville baseball continue to be so good after graduating star players?
Willard
The Tigers dominated last week with wins over Nixa, Neosho and Carl junction to move to 19-3 this season while still sitting atop the Class 5 rankings. Drew Quinlan is on a tear and is 9 for his last 11, which included a 3 for 3 win over Carl Junction with two runs, two RBIs and a stolen base. Pitching continues to be consistent with the team ERA being its best since the 2019 season when it allowed 2.8 runs per game when it finished third in the state. It's won a state championship and collected another third-place finish since then.
West Plains
Willard always seems to draw a top-tier opponent in its district and West Plains may be the Tigers' biggest challenger this year. The Zizzers are state-ranked and started the season 17-0 before losing three straight last week to Kickapoo and a pair of Arkansas opponents. Tank Sims, a Southeast Missouri signee, has been a monster in the Zizzers lineup, with a notable two home run game in which he recorded eight RBIs against Hollister earlier this month.
Nixa
Not many have played a more difficult schedule than Nixa this season as it's fallen in six of its last 10 games but it remains a team that will be worth watching in the postseason. As of Monday, the only team with a winning record left of its last eight games is Republic on April 30. Recent losses have come to Class 6 No. 2 Francis Howell and No. 3 Rock Bridge (which handed Nixa three of its 11 losses this year). Nixa has been competitive in every game it's and will be in the mix later in the year. Missouri State commit Wyatt Vincent continues to be the most consistent bat in the lineup and he's gotten some help from freshman Adam McKnight and Caeden Cloud among others.
Glendale
The Falcons remain the biggest challenger to Nixa in Class 6, District 6 as they have the best record in the group and have won 11 straight heading into Monday. They'll have difficult matchups with Francis Howell and Rock Bridge later this week, giving us a better idea of how Nixa and Glendale stack up. Mark Ross has had the hottest bat during the stretch with a .545 batting average across the 11 games. That includes 15 RBIs, 12 runs and a homer. Drew Wedgeworth continues to be a star on the mound with a season 1.67 ERA with 32 strikeouts and 34 hits allowed across 37 2/3 innings entering Monday.
More southwest Missouri teams to keep an eye on
Mansfield
New Covenant
Strafford
Nevada
Webb City
Branson
Catholic
Republic
Wyatt D. Wheeler is a reporter and columnist with the Springfield News-Leader. You can contact him at 417-371-6987, by email at wwheeler@news-leader.com or X at @WyattWheeler_NL.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Springfield area high school baseball state championship contenders
