By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Glendale’s 2024 season ended in the same fashion its 2023 campaign did.
The Falcons were held in check against one of the state’s elite pitchers.
Blue Springs ace Cole Gibler was as good as advertised in Saturday afternoon’s Class 6 quarterfinals at Glendale High School.
The Arkansas signee and left-handed fireballer struck out 10 over six innings in a 2-0 win for Blue Springs, as Glendale’s postseason run ended in the state quarterfinals for the second straight season.
Glendale coach Jim Julian said Gibler’s velocity wasn’t the biggest challenge his hitters faced. Instead, it was a larger-than-expected dose of curveballs.
“He threw a lot more breaking balls early than we knew of,” Julian said. “We had a small sample size on him, and that’s kind of what happens when you get into these games against teams from the Kansas City area that you never see.
“That’s a credit to (Blue Springs), too. We’re a good fastball-hitting team, so I liked our matchup if the scouting report that we had held true. He did a great job of attacking early and pitching backwards a lot of the game.”
Last year, Glendale lost 2-0 in the state quarterfinals versus St. Francis Borgia and its star pitcher, Jack Nobe. Nobe, a Xavier signee, threw a complete game two-hitter and recorded 10 strikeouts.
Gibler nearly matched those numbers on Saturday. He allowed just one hit and two walks over six innings on 98 pitches. Gibler’s twin brother, Nick, came on in the seventh to collect the save.
“We knew (Gibler’s) fastball would be very lively, and it was. We did well, I think, against the fastball,” said Glendale starting pitcher and cleanup hitter, Drew Wedgeworth. “We had trouble guessing against the curveball. That curveball was probably his best pitch today.”
Wedgeworth had a solid start in the loss. He threw all six innings for Glendale, allowing six hits and three walks while striking out four.
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“Another unbelievable performance by him on a big stage,” Julian said. “He wants the ball in these situations, and we’re more than happy to give it to him. In true Drew fashion, any time he gets runners on, he does a great job of working out of sticky situations.”
Blue Springs (26-11 overall, No. 9 in MHSBCA Class 6 state poll) manufactured the game’s only runs with a rally in the bottom of the fourth.
The first two Wildcat hitters reached base, which would set up Ronin Vicenti for a one-out, RBI single. The next batter, Gabe Rogers, followed with a sac-fly RBI to center that put the Wildcats ahead 2-0.
Blue Springs advances to next weekend’s Class 6 state final four at Ozark Mountain Sports Complex in Ozark. The Wildcats will face Francis Howell, a team Glendale beat in late April, at 1 p.m. on Friday, May 31 in the semifinals.
The Falcons were gunning for the program’s first final four berth since 1978.
“I definitely think if we were able to get past Nobe last year, it’s a big what-if, but we would’ve been playing in the final four right in our own backyard,” Wedgeworth said. “The vibe here today was electric. If we would’ve advanced, we might’ve played a team (Francis Howell) that we already beat this year. But we just couldn’t get past (Gibler) today.”
Glendale’s best scoring chance occurred in the third inning. The Falcons capitalized on a Blue Springs error to put a runner on second with one out.
The Falcons had the top of their order coming up, but Cole Gibler escaped the jam with a pair of groundouts.
Only five Glendale batters reached base.
“We ran into a good pitcher again. It was kind of the same as last year: We got some stuff going, but couldn’t get anything across,” Julian said.
Glendale (No. 7 in MHSBCA Class 6 state poll) finishes 26-6 overall and will graduate an accomplished senior class.
The Falcons set a school record for wins this season and won their second straight district title. Glendale’s tallied 101 wins over the last four years; Many of the 2024 seniors have played varsity since their freshman year.
“Just an unbelievable group of guys that are fun to be around,” Julian said. “I told them afterwards that they’re more like brothers than they probably really know. When they pick at each other or rib each other, it’s brotherly. It’s not trying to get under somebody’s skin. It’s a brotherhood. I’m a big believer that team chemistry goes a long way.
“The last couple of years, we haven’t had to manufacture team chemistry. They’ve done a good job with supplying that. These nine seniors have grown up playing with each other. Great group.”
Wedgeworth said he started playing with some of the senior group in the summer of his 7th grade year.
“It’s tough to see a lot of these guys go… guys that I’ve seen absolutely mature beyond what I thought they could’ve done,” Wedgeworth said. “It sucks, but it has to end at some point. It’s been a heck of a ride. These past five years have been fantastic.”
