Tigers win historic title

The Excelsior Springs baseball team won its first state title earlier this month, winning the MSHSAA Class 4 championship.

The Tigers had previously finished third on two different occasions – in 2023 and 2018. However, they had never reached the title game until this year.

Excelsior Springs (29-7) lost three games before winning its regular season finale. In the postseason, Excelsior Springs began its run to the title with a 10-0 victory over Richmond and a 5-3 win over Oak Grove.

In the Class 4 state tournament, Excelsior Springs defeated Benton, 8-4, before it escaped St. Michael with a narrow 8-7 victory in the quarterfinals.

The Tigers kept the momentum going with a 2-0 win over Springfield Catholic, which finished third in state. One day later, the Tigers won the state title over Orchard Farm by the score of 2-0.

This year’s 29 victories tied the program’s best from the 2023 season. However, this year’s squad won 80.6 percent of its games for the best make in program history.