Written by Ethan Silverman, Mike Rosenbaum, and JC Madey

The Class 4 Final Four is sure to provide some fireworks in Springfield on Friday and Saturday. Offensively, the teams have combined to score 1,086 runs onthe season, an astronomical total that will force the pitchers to be on their game, and defenses behind them to be on their toes. There is no doubt that the balls will be flying, but will it be the stellar defense of Ozark, the pitching of Brett Graves from Francis Howell, the potent offense of Vianney, or the total team contributions from Liberty that lead to the coveted Class 4 championship?

Ozark

For the first time since their 2008 Class 4 State Championship, the Ozark Tigers return to the Final Four in hopes of bringing home the gold. If history follows suit for the Tigers, they will leave Meador Park on Saturday with their fourth State championship. The two of the three previous trips (2004 and 2008) to the Final Four have resulted in a State championship. Coming off a disappointing 2010 campaign which saw the streak of 10 COC Conference Championships snapped, Ozark looks to be back on track as a top Class 4 team

 

For Coach Mike Essick, this will be his fourth trip to the Final Four in his seventeen years leading the Ozark Tigers. “We are playing well right now. We have been hot and playing well,” says Essick on the post season run of his club.  “

 

As a team that wasn’t supposed to make it, Essick says “We were 5-5 to start the season coming off of a 15-11 season. We didn’t have a number one pitcher. The pitchers have all changed roles and we had a kid (Snyder) who just emerged and has thrown well. They boys are all just playing real well.”

 

On the preparations for the Final Four Essick had to say to his team, “I am going to tell the boys to just enjoy this, it doesn’t happen often. This is just my fourth trip to the Final Four, and I have been coaching for seventeen years. We are going get to business with practice. It is out there to win and we are as hot as anybody right now, why not us?”

 

After starting the season with a 5-5 record, Ozark went on a 17-game winning streak putting them in the Final Four. Big wins against Willard, Branson, Kickapoo, and Webb City propelled this underdog team. Ozark used the formula of good pitching, solid defense, and timely hitting to propel them to the Final Four.

 

At the plate, Ozark is led by Kyle Jochems, who batted .420 with a team leading 6 homeruns and 27 RBIs. Michael Headlee was also a big producer and catalyst for the Tiger offense with a .375 batting average, 4 homeruns, and a team leading 10 doubles. Lefty Blake Martin also contributed with a .395 batting average, 3 homeruns, and 17 RBIs.

 

Junior RHP Landon Snyder stepped in midway to become the ace of the staff, and went 5-2 in 47.2 innings pitched with 44 strikeouts. The sectional win against Webb City punctuated how valuable Snyder became to the pitching staff, throwing a one hitter to shut down the high octane Cardinal offense. Cody Holzer put together a stellar season as well, with a 4-0 record and 1.09 ERA. Holzer threw a gem against Timberland, the clinching game that allowed Ozark to advance to the Final Four. This one-two punch puts the Tigers in good position to win two games for the championship.

 

With their team defense a major strength, look for the Ozark defense to be the factor that separates them from the rest of the field.

 

Francis Howell

The Francis Howell Vikings have repeatedly shown that they are the most well-rounded team in Missouri, as they head into the Class 4A Semifinals with an astounding 30-3 record.  To reach the semifinals, Howell defeated CBC (Class 4 champions in 2010), and ended SLUH’s perfect season.  Of their three losses this season, two came in back-to-back games against Cape Central and Howell Central, and the other against the talented Rock Bridge Bruins. 

 

Possessing arguably the state’s most potent offense, the Vikings have an ability to put up crooked numbers in a hurry. At the top of Howell’s batting order are their table setters: RHP/SS Brett Graves (.442 BA, .532 OBP, 44 runs, 12 doubles, 5 home runs, 33 RBI and 12 SB) and 2B Brett Peel (.382 BA, .504 OBP, 48 runs, 5 triples, 21 RBI and 18 SB).  All season, both Graves and Peel have consistently gotten on base ahead of Francis Howell’s 3-4 tandem of 3B Case Munson and CF Jake Ivory.  Munson (.458 BA, 44 hits, 10 doubles, 12 home runs, 56 RBI and 11 SB) has been an RBI-machine this season, and seems to thrive with runners in scoring position.  The Jefferson College-bound senior also has a flare for the dramatic, having hit a walk-off grand slam against Vianney earlier in the season and a go-ahead grand slam against St. Louis High University last week.  When Munson has struggled to push across runs, the Mizzou-bound Ivory (.406, 43 runs, 8 doubles, 6 home runs, 44 RBI and 12 SB) has helped carry the Vikings’ offense.

 

 

Like Munson and Ivory, hard-nosed catcher Gordie Gundaker (.427 BA, 41 hits, 6 doubles, 2 triples, home run, 31 RBI) has displayed a knack for driving in runs this season, while also handling a talented pitching staff.  The Vikings’ also have several key role-players filling out their infield and outfield: INF Zac Perkins (24 runs, 26 hits, 14 RBI and 14 SB); RF Jacob Rhodes (.328, 20 hits, 14 RBI and 14 SB); LF Jared Hagley (.313 BA, 26 runs, 30 hits, 8 doubles and 21 RBI); and INF/RHP Kyle Nuetzel (.414 BA, .585 OBP, 24 runs, 3 doubles, home run, 20 RBI).

 

The Vikings’ infield defense has had bouts of inconsistency, but that has usually been a product of having either Graves or Nuetzel on the mound, and is nothing that their offense can’t compensate for.  The outfield has committed a total of three errors this season thanks to the great instincts and range of Ivory, Hagley and Rhoades.

 

At the helm of the Vikings’ pitching staff is the University of Missouri signee, Graves.  Named as the Gatorade Player of the Year in Missouri on Wednesday, the right-hander heads into the semifinals with a 9-1 record with two saves and a 1.27 ERA.  In 55 ½ innings, he has allowed 35 hits, 18 walks and recorded 62 strikeouts, and opponents are batting .174 against him.

Other starters for the Vikings include RHP Steven Diel (4-0, 27 IP, 2.85 ERA and 39 K), Nuetzel (3-0, 29 IP, 3.38 ERA and 22 K) and RHP Aaron Dunkley (6-1, 40 1/3 IP, 3.30 ERA and 30 K).

Much like their starting pitchers, Howell’s relievers have also thrown the ball well this season.  RHP Brannon Callaway (12 appearances, 6-1, 33 1/3 IP, 2.94 ERA and 15 K) and LHP Matt Norton (16 appearances, 17 IP, 2.88 ERA and 10 K) have been fixtures in most of their games, and Ivory (2-0, 4 2/3 IP, 1.50 ERA and 7 K) has been used to shut the door late in the game.

Francis Howell will be forced to defeat Vianney (25-8) to reach the Class 4A Championship on Saturday.  In their only meeting this season, Howell beat the Golden Griffins, 13-10, in an exciting slugfest at C&H Park on April 20.  Trailing 10-6 headed into their final at-bat, the Vikings rallied for seven runs in a come-from-behind win that was capped by a walk-off grand slam by Case Munson.  In the contest, Munson belted three home runs and set a school record with nine RBI.

 

Vianney

The Golden Griffins stormed through the first part of their schedule, going 10-1 in their first 11 games.  After a five-game losing streak during the middle of April set them back to 13-7, Vianney roared backed, winning six of its final seven regular season games.  After coming from behind in their District Championship game against Rockwood Summit, and again winning late against Eureka in their Sectional opener, Vianney overcame a two-run first inning deficit against Cape Central to advance to State Semifinals for the first time since 2006, where they won the Class 4A title.

The Golden Griffin’s are loaded offensively.  The Griffins have scored nearly 300 runs this season, led by University of Central Missouri signee Ryan Snyder, whose .520 batting average, 51 hits, and 40 RBI are all team highs.  Senior Ryan Barnes also brings a heavy bat with a .404 batting average and crushing seven home runs this season.

Liberty

The Liberty Blue Jays are probably the least known team out of the remaining Class 4A teams, yet they are definitely not to be overlooked.  Liberty went an astounding 27-5 during the regular season.  After winning the Metro Leadoff Tournament, the Blue Jays seemed to coast for the rest of their schedule.  After racing through District opponents Platte County, Park Hill, and Staley, Liberty faced two familiar rivals in Raytown High School and Ray-Pec High School.  After going 1-1 during the regular season, Liberty gutted out an 8-inning 12-8 victory over Ray-Pec in the Quarterfinal matchup, securing a date with Ozark High School in the State Seminfinals.  This is Liberty’s first trip to the big dance since 2002, where the Blue Jays came out flying and took home the championship.

Liberty is loaded both on the mound and with the bats.  It all starts with brothers Matt and Todd Hinkley.  Matt, a senior pitcher, has a record of 7-1 through the season with an ERA of 2.70.  He has no problems pitching in big games, as Matt got the win in the District final matchup against Staley, throwing 130 pitches in the contest.  His brother Todd, a junior, provides the spark for an offense that plated 330 runs this season.  Like his brother, Todd is not shy to big games, as he went 3-3 at the plate with four RBI’s and two runs scored.  Yet top to bottom, this is one of the deadliest lineups in the Class 4A division.  Seniors Dylan Stevens, Zach Pirrello, and Matt Dye are all Blue Jay hitters to keep an eye this weekend.

Liberty has made a quiet, yet quick-paced run through this year’s state playoffs.  Friday’s 1 p.m. duel with Ozarks should be a great high school game.  With both teams displaying good pitching staffs and a solid lineup, the winner of this matchup will get the opportunity to cap off what may be considered a Cinderella season.