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By Michael Cignoli (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
OZARK – Moments after their state championship hopes were dashed, Springfield Catholic players took their eyes off the scoreboard and started looking at tomorrow’s weather forecast.
Well, a figurative one, anyway.
Father Tolton Regional Catholic overcame a three-run, first-inning deficit to win its first state championship in program history, as the 10th-ranked Trailblazers stunned the top-ranked Fightin’ Irish, 8-4, in the Class 3 title game on Thursday night at US Ballpark.
The season will still go down as one of the most successful in Springfield Catholic’s history, as the 18-11 team had a chance to win its third-ever state title and first in eight years. The Fightin’ Irish began to realize that shortly after they collected their second-place medals and trophy.
“Right now it doesn’t feel great,” Fightin’ Irish senior Cole Leonhart said. “But I think tomorrow we’ll start seeing the sunshine that comes out of these clouds and I think it’ll start feeling better as the years go by. But it’ll fuel these guys to get back here next year.”
The sunshine Leonhart spoke of is the opportunity to play in a state championship game, which was something the Fightin’ Irish could only dream of when he began his freshman season. They had not even won a district title since the 2014 team did it en route to the state championship.
They snapped that streak by winning one in 2019. After losing the 2020 season to COVID-19, they won another last spring during a 24-win campaign that ended in the state quarterfinals.
This season – behind strong senior leadership, dominant pitching from their Division I-bound juniors and key contributions from the sophomores and freshmen – the Fightin’ Irish won a third straight title and finally completed a long-awaited climb back to the title game.
“I think making it is the best feeling we had,” Leonhart said. “Losing might not be the best feeling, but I think we’ll realize that second place isn’t so bad.”
That was the same approach that Fightin’ Irish coach Courtney Spitz took with his team.
“That’s what I’ve told these kids,” the coach added. “‘You’ve taken this program to new levels.’ These players earned that. That’s what you have to look at. Saying ‘We’re just continuing to get better. You’re a part of history. You’re a part of bonds that you’ve created for a lifetime with each other.’ We’re pretty happy about that. There’s only, what, 40-something kids that get to participate in this game for Class 3 baseball? I told the kids ‘You’re those guys. There’s plenty of other high school baseball players that wanted to participate in this moment, but you did it.’”
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For a moment, it looked like they might do more than just participate.
Mizzou-bound junior Coleman Morrison hit a two-run double during the top of the first inning, then threw a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the frame as Catholic led 3-0 after one.
But the Trailblazers made a pitching change at the start of the second inning that dramatically shifted the game, as Connor Head replaced starter Logan Thompson.
Thompson had a 5.62 earned run average and 1-1 record through the end of district play. Head had the best statistics of any Father Tolton pitcher, with a perfect 5-0 mark and 1.12 ERA.
Head shut the door in the second, then two Trailblazers walked to open the bottom of the frame. Justus Martin brought them home with a two-run double, then scored on an error to tie the game.
The Fightin’ Irish regained a 4-3 lead when Ben Ruter doubled to deep right in the top of the third, but Martin hit a two-run single in the bottom of the frame to give the Trailblazers the lead for good.
Father Tolton added two more runs in the fourth and another in the sixth.
The Fightin’ Irish did get two runners on base in each of the sixth and seventh innings – an error and a walk helped – but they were not able to bring any home.
Head allowed just two hits over the final four innings, as the Trailblazers outhit Springfield Catholic 8-7.
“They got some key hits at the right time,” Spitz said. “You look back at that scoreboard or the scorebook and they had one more hit than us in the game and it happened to come with a couple of runners on. That’s what I told the kids. Baseball is beautiful, but it can be cruel, too. You feel like you played a pretty good game and you’re right there in the game the whole time and one or two hits means the difference in a seven-inning game. As much as that hurts, we’re right there to try to battle back. We just didn’t get the key hit to drive in the runners on first and second or second and third. They got that hit tonight and we didn’t.”
Morrison allowed seven runs – five earned – struck out six and walked four in 3.2 innings.
“He’s going to be a big time player at the next level,” Spitz said. “These moments are going to help him grow. He has nothing to hang his head about. Very proud of what he did on the mound tonight. That’s kind of how we thought this season would be. One of our two arms are going to be in this moment and tonight, unfortunately, it didn’t go our way.”
Those two arms – Morrison and fellow Mizzou-bound junior Ben Smith – are both poised to return to a Catholic team that is graduating just three seniors, whose influence will be felt for years to come.
“Those three seniors – Weston Cline, Cole Leonhart and Colton Galligos – have just continued to make each other better and represent their team and their school really well,” Spitz said. “Them getting us here only benefits the kids that are here so when we’re in these moments again, we’re better for it.”
With seven returning position players and one of the most dynamic 1-2 pitching punches in the state, the Fightin’ Irish expect sunshine will be in the immediate forecast — but hoping that a return to the Final Four is in the extended one.
“When we talk about getting back here next year, it’s going to be tough,” Spitz said. “It’s going to be a tough road. It always is. That’s the thing. Being here is an awesome moment, because it’s so tough to get here. But for the kids coming back, I think they’ll have some fire in their belly next year to try to repeat.”
