Trojans win districts, look to seal place in history

It didn’t seem like the Class 4 District 16 championship game would ever finally get played after being delayed several days due to the weather, but it was well worth the wait for the Park Hill Trojans (16-5) as they defeated St. Joe Central 10-8 Saturday to advance to the sectional round of the state playoffs. The few days wait was nothing compared to the wait they had to endure for their first district title since 1997, a year before the opening of now district rival Park Hill South divided the district into two high schools.

A win Tuesday against Truman (15-6) would represent the first time a Park Hill baseball team has won a playoff game in five attempts. Advancing would likely mean a showdown with a talented Rockhurst squad on Thursday.

Coach Greg Reynolds gives credit to a strong senior class and things falling into place at the right time for their impressive run through one of the areas’ toughest districts.

“We’ve got 11 seniors with varying degrees of playing time and every one of them has had to overcome something. They deserve this,” Reynolds said. “We had our pitching staff the way we wanted it and everything set up to the point where we knew if we put the ball in play we’d have a good chance.”

Senior Clay Smith, a stronghold on the pitching mound throughout the season, led the Trojans past Park Hill South in the district opener before also notching the win in the title game.

“We knew we had a chance to be strong and it wasn’t because of the talent, it’s because we’re all friends and we could play together with that chemistry,” Smith said.

Reynolds believes the Trojans reached a turning point mid-season during a double-header against William Chrisman.

“We had a couple selfish acts during a stretch earlier in the season where we knew we wouldn’t be able to beat teams like Kearney and St. Joe Central,” Reynolds said. “We wouldn’t beat them unless we did it as a team and the kids really bought into it.”

It was a team effort in Saturday’s title game as an offensive battle ensued as Central scored two runs in the first inning. Park Hill came back in the second inning as Alec Kennedy batted Adam Vanderpool in followed by Daniel Jessen scoring on an error to tie it at 2-2. Central added a run in the third before a two-run homer from Park Hill’s J.D. Weyer made the score 4-3. Central then brought in ace Keaton Steele to quiet the Trojan bats, but they sealed their title in the fifth by taking advantage of a huge opportunity. With the Indians up 6-4, Park Hill had the bases loaded and no outs. James Vega scored on an interference call and an Alex Otto sac fly scored Weyer to tie the score at 6-6. Kennedy used the momentum to blast the Trojans ahead with a three run homer making the score 9-6. A Nick Hughes RBI later scored Weyer for the sixth run of the inning for the Trojans. Central added two more runs, but it wasn’t enough as Park Hill claimed the title with a 10-8 victory.

The team discussed what a district title would mean, but the immediate focus was on the next game.

“This is a group that is playing one more day for each other. It doesn’t matter who you play anymore, it just matters that you’re playing,” Reynolds said. “If you believe you can beat anybody, which we’re starting to get there, we’ll be alright.”