The 2024 Missouri high school baseball season is quickly approaching and, as usual, excitement is abound throughout the state. Players and coaches have been working in preparation for the upcoming season and, as is the case each year, there are some very talented players and teams across Missouri. 

Teams across the state have goals and aspirations to finish their seasons in Ozark come early June, but there is plenty of work to be done before that becomes reality. We hope to familiarize our readers with many of the teams across the state as we preview individual teams across Missouri. We will take you right up to first pitch this season with these team previews, eventually releasing our Preseason team rankings that’ll carry us into the opening week of action.

Please keep checking back throughout the season as we will be your one-stop shop for everything related to high school baseball across the state, and we’ll be releasing daily content to ensure our top-tier coverage of the ‘Show Me’ state. 

Our 2024 preseason coverage continues today.

Team: St. Dominic
2023 Record (Playoff Finish): 15-10-1
Conference: Archdiocesan Athletic Association
Classification: 5A
Head Coach: Cie Arell

UPPERCLASSMEN TO KNOW 

+ LHP Charlie Kilcullin (2024; Central Missouri)
+ RHP Evan Luke (2024; Central Missouri)
+ INF/RHP Andrew Henke (2024)
+ RHP Cooper Smith (2024) 
+ RHP Josh Burger (2024)
+ UTL Brady Baker (2024)
+ C Harrison Wurdack (2024)
+ INF Jack Roppa (2024)
+ 1B Evan Mannebach (2024)
+ LHP Alex Alsop (2025)
+ OF Kaynen Simmons (2025)

UNDERCLASS FOLLOWS

+ 1B Cooper Montgomery (2026)
+ OF Kolt Hopper (2026)
+ OF Chase Spurgeon (2026) 

OUTLOOK 

Last year was plenty productive for the Crusaders - they nearly won their conference championship and finished as runner-ups in the District championship as well. There’s a few key pieces from last year that have departed, but there’s still plenty of talent scattered throughout the roster. 

Starting on the mound, a trio of upperclassmen will look to lead this rotation in LHP Charlie Kilcullin (2024; Central Missouri), RHP Evan Luke (2024; Central Missouri), and LHP Alex Alsop (2025). Kilcullin anchored this group last year as a high pitchability, three-pitch strike-thrower, with a 3.53 ERA over 43 ⅔ innings. Luke shouldered a 27-inning workload last season, punching out 29 in that span, while Alsop flashed in a brief stint - three starts, 15 innings, 2.33 ERA. 

Charlie Kilcullin

There’s depth in this pitching staff as well, all of whom were at the varsity level last season. INF/RHP Andrew Henke (2024) and RHP Cooper Smith (2024) each threw more than 18 innings as relievers last year. Smith led the team in total appearances with 15 and posted a 2.72 ERA with 20 strikeouts out of the ‘pen. RHP Brennan Swindler (2025), LHP Trey Peroutka III (2025), and RHP Josh Burger (2024) are three other names to know on this staff. 

Though the Crusaders will be without two top returners on offense from last year, this group is a formidable bunch that offers a blend of experience and talented newcomers. The aforementioned Henke, as well as UTL Brady Baker (2024) and C Harrison Wurdack (2024) are back after promising junior years. Henke provides the thump in this lineup, slashing .375/.412/.713 with team highs in home runs (5) and RBI (29). Baker hit .404 and reached base at a .558 clip, he walked nearly three times as much as he struck out, in 79 plate appearances. Wurdack, who’ll likely see the bulk of the work behind the plate, is an athletic left-handed hitter that posted a .348/.411/.455 triple-slash in 2023. INF Jack Roppa (2024) and 1B Evan Mannebach (2024) are two more returners that saw consistent playing time last spring, while OF Kaynen Simmons (2025) should factor into the outfield mix as well. 

There’s a few youngsters that should impact this club right away, starting with 1B Cooper Montgomery (2026), who’s as physical of a left-handed bat that you’ll find in the state’s sophomore class. This winter, Montgomery generated some of the loudest contact we saw from any 2026 graduate at our event both on average (93.7 mph) and at peak (100.7 mph). OF Kolt Hopper (2026) and OF Chase Spurgeon (2026) are two more talented sophomores to watch as potential impact types for the Crusaders this spring. 

BOTTOM LINE

St. Dominic’s 2023 concluded as District runner-ups and the Crusaders are looking to build upon that this spring. They’re bringing back a good amount of their core from last year’s squad and supplementing that bunch with a talented pool of underclassmen looking to make their mark on the varsity scene. 

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