'They fought all season': Why this spring was a success for Tolton baseball

Tolton baseball fought to the very end. It experienced ups and downs in its MSHAA Class 4 sectional matchup against Moberly, but a late seventh-inning run and passed ball behind home plate saw the Trailblazers fall to the Spartans 5-4.

“Hats off to Moberly,” Tolton head coach Erich Chick said. “They did a great job finishing today. We had a lot of good energy, we fought really hard.”

The energy for Tolton (21-9) was up all game. Its players were from the dugout despite falling down 3-0 through the fourth inning. It helped rejuvenate the squad as sophomore Carter Henke made it a two-run game with a pair of RBIs. In the next inning, fellow sophomore Will Breitweiser brought home two more, giving Tolton its first lead, which didn’t hold.

“The boys showed some fight and got themselves back into it,” Chick said. “We just couldn’t finish.”

Tolton’s resurgence by underclassmen exhibited how good younger players are and the bright future ahead for the program.

“We got a lot of young guys coming back,” Chick said. “I’m very excited about it, on the mound, in the field, and the lineup.”

While the season is over and the Trailblazers fell short of their Final Four aspirations, Chick positively reflected on what his squad accomplished this season. Tolton won 20 games for the first time in program history while reclaiming a district crown, its first in Class Four. The Trailblazers were the last Boone County program remaining in the MSHAA State Tournament.

“I’m super proud of them. They fought all season and obviously, winning a district title against a very solid Southern Boone team,” Chick said. “It was nothing short of amazing for us. We did have aspirations of a Final Four, and we were very close to it, and hopefully, we’ll be able to get back to it next year.”

When thinking about their game against Moberly and the overall season, there’s a lesson that Chick wants his team to take away.

“Just staying within themselves, keeping the energy from start to finish and just understanding that if we get down, we stay up the whole time even when teams throw that punch, we got to be able to fall back,” Chick said.

While the season is over, the program surely has better days ahead.

“They’re going to go over the summer with their teams and want to get better and hopefully, you know, hopefully, come back, getting in the weight room, get stronger and ready to go.”

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: 'They fought all season': Why this spring was a success for Tolton baseball