C4D1: Dexter, youngster, upsets 3-time champ to play for title

After playing two months of varsity baseball, second-year Dexter High School baseball coach Steve Edwards has seen enough from his young Bearcats to know that they can handle pressure situations.

With that in mind, Edwards didn’t hesitate to throw freshman pitcher Trey Pedigo against tradition-rich Kennett on Monday in the semifinal of the MSHSAA Class 4 District 1 Tournament, and Pedigo delivered - and then some.

Pedigo limited the Indians to just four hits and no earned runs through six innings, and Dexter earned a 3-1 win to advance to Wednesday’s championship game.

“I thought Trey did a tremendous job,” Edwards said, “and we believe in him.”

Edwards has no choice but to believe in his young players because that is all he has.

The Bearcats (14-10) have just one senior (outfielder Ryan Young), but despite that youth, they have won the most games in 11 years.

“This whole season,” Edwards continued, “a lot of people are looking by us because of our youth. That is why we work so hard in the bullpen. That is why we worked so hard in the offseason.”

Dexter will face Fredericktown with Marquand-Zion (14-7) on Wednesday at East Park at 4:30 p.m.

The Blackcats got past Perryville 3-1 in the other semifinal.

Wednesday’s game will be the third championship game this season for Dexter, which fell in the title games of the Stoddard County Athletic Association Tournament (10-8 to Bernie) and the SEMO Conference Tournament (5-0 to Jackson).

“Let’s hope the third time is the charm,” Edwards said.

The Bearcats, which had lost to the Indians 12 consecutive times over nine years, took advantage of some sloppy defensive play by Kennett.

Dexter junior Jackson Howard reached base to start the second inning on an Indian error before he advanced to second base on another miscue.

“We had a bad inning,” veteran Kennett coach Aaron New said. “We talked about it yesterday, that is how you lose in the postseason.

“If you give somebody some energy, some momentum early, all of a sudden, here comes the upset.”

Bearcat freshman Justus Lovelady singled, which moved Howard to third base, and then he scored on a third Kennett error.

Lovelady made it 2-0 on an RBI single by Pedigo.

As good as Pedigo was on the mound, Kennet pitching from seniors Ashton Williams (three innings, two hits allowed, one earned run, six strikeouts) and Peyton Branum (four innings, three hits, no runs, four strikeouts) were also solid.

However, Pedigo was able to get out of difficult situations in the second, third, fourth, and fifth innings. In each of those innings, Kennett got a pair of runners on base, but could only muster one run total.

“We were out in front of everything,” New said of his team’s hitting woes. “We popped up a lot of pitches. He made some really good pitches, and we just couldn’t make the ball travel.”

Offensively, Pedigo helped his cause by hitting a team-best two hits and driving in a couple of runs while junior Nolan Alford (one walk), Howard (two runs, one walk), Lovelady (one hit, one run), freshman Jaxon Miller (one hit), and sophomore Houston Neely (one hit) also contributed.

Dexter got an inning of relief out of freshman Connor Hankins, who didn’t allow a hit or a run.

Branum notched a hit, one run scored, and a walk for Kennett while junior Caleb Duncan (two walks), senior John Poole (one hit), junior Hayden Gilmore (one hit, one walk), Williams (one walk), senior Matthew Gardner (one walk), senior Jackson Morrison (one RBI), and junior Owen Williams (one hit) were also productive.

The Indians had won three consecutive District titles, which included trips to the State Finals in 2022 (a third-place finish) and 2021 (a state title).