High school baseball: Father Tolton and Southern Boone advance to MSHSAA state semifinals

Boone County will have two baseball representatives at state next week.

Father Tolton and Southern Boone both won their quarterfinal games to advance to the MSHSAA semifinals for the first time in each program's respective history.

The Trailblazers beat Elsberry 6-3 and the Eagles beat John Burroughs 3-1. The two will play next Wednesday with a berth to the Class 3 and 4 championship games on the line.

Both teams celebrated with a dogpile after their respective final outs.

For Tolton, the Final Four berth is a continuation of what the team built last season. 

The Trailblazers were a win away from the Final Four and set it as the season-wide goal of taking that next step. They did so against Elsberry and made sure to be in a position to move on.

Tolton loaded the bases and led 3-0 after the top of the first, but Elsberry fought back to make it 3-2. Another run in the fourth made it a 4-2 'Blazers lead.

More:Why Tolton baseball's win over Southern Boone was a perfect way to end the regular season

Elsberry cut the lead to 4-3 and threatened to take the lead in the sixth. Tolton ended that jam with a 5-3-2 double play. Two more insurance runs and a scoreless seventh gave Tolton the win.

The win not only advances Tolton in the state tournament but avenges the Trailblazers' loss to Elsberry in the quarterfinals last year. Tolton fell to Elsberry 6-4 in the 2021 state tournament.

"Absolutely over the moon right now," Tolton coach Ehrich Chick told the Tribune in a text. "These guys have worked hard over the year after last year’s historical season. For them to dogpile and write their own history is very special to me."

Southern Boone did the same, advancing to its first-ever Final Four.

The Eagles held off John Burroughs behind Bradley Smith's pitching performance. Smith earned the win, going over five innings of work. He only recorded one strikeout, meaning Smith confused hitters into consistent routine defensive plays.

Carter Karotka provided the offense in the 3-1 win, going 1 for 2 at the plate, taking two walks and recording two RBIs.

John Burroughs led for the majority of the game, leading 1-0 through the top of the fifth. The Eagles scored three runs in the bottom of the fifth to take a 3-1 lead.

Smith helped his own cause, tying the game at 1-1 on an RBI single. Karokta took the lead with a two-RBI double into right field.

John Burroughs loaded the bases in the top of the seventh, putting the winning run on first. Southern Boone shut the door to win the game and clinch a spot in the Final Four.

The Eagles will play 12-17 Marshall at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, while Tolton will play 21-4 Lawson at 7 p.m. Both games are at US Ballpark in Ozark.

Both teams advanced, meaning they both have played the best season in program history in more than one case.

Tolton's 16 wins eclipsed the 14 wins it set last season, and Southern Boone's 32 wins eclipsed the 23 wins set last season. Their berths in the Final Four cement these seasons, regardless of where they finish, as the best to play ball.

The most coincidental part is how both the 'Blazers and Eagles finished their regular seasons with a game against each other. That 8-6 Tolton win set the bar for each team entering the playoffs.

Southern Boone needed to refocus its talent, while Tolton could ride the momentum it built. Both the Eagles and 'Blazers did so at a high level and have made it further than any past team in their respective programs.

However, both still have a chance to cement themselves as the best in MSHSAA history now. That isn't lost on either team.

"They deserve it all and I’m proud of them," Chick said. "Now it’s time to get to work for Springfield."

Chris Kwiecinski is the sports editor for the Columbia Daily Tribune, overseeing University of Missouri and Boone County sports coverage. Follow him on Twitter @OchoK_ and contact him at CKwiecinsk@gannett.com or 573-815-1857.