State's top-ranked team awaits Oran in Class 1 baseball semifinals

The Oran Eagles haven't been preparing for the Class 1 final four just since defeating Naylor in the state quarterfinals last Wednesday.

The groundwork for today's state semifinal game against Santa Fe has been season-long.

The Eagles have been dealt a few bruises during the regular season, handed out by big boys like Class 4 schools Poplar Bluff and Helias Catholic, Class 3 schools Dexter, Mount Vernon and Notre Dame, as well as Clever, the No. 1 team in Class 2 and also a state semifinalist.

Oran, a Class 1 semifinalist last year, also has left some marks. The Eagles have beaten Class 3 schools MICDS and Strafford, and were one of only four schools to beat Class 2 Chaffee this season.

"Coach [Mitch] Wood does an excellent job getting us a good schedule," junior Kody Moore said.

Oran's Seth Ressel catches a popup during the Eagles' sectional game. (Laura Simon)

The Eagles, who took on the Notre Dame Showcase and a three-game trip to Springfield, Mo., have the distinction of having the most losses among the Class 1 final four teams.

Oran (19-8) will take on No. 1 ranked Santa Fe (21-1) at 10 a.m. today at Meador Park in Springfield, Mo., while Norwood (21-5) and Sturgeon (13-6) meet in the other semifinal at 1 p.m.

"We've played a really tough schedule. You can't really look at our record," Oran junior catcher Alex Heuring said. "On paper, you look at it, I don't think there possibly is anybody that could have played a harder schedule."

The Eagles also likely will be facing a premier pitcher in Santa Fe's 6-foot-4 junior left-hander Andrew Curry, but they will do so with the confidence of knowing they've faced some of the best pitching around.

Oran has faced Notre Dame right-handed ace Cody Heisserer, Naylor's left-handed ace Dalton Woodard and Cooter hard-throwing right-hander Jordan Anderson, as well as Clever's best.

"I don't know a lot about Santa Fe, but I find it hard to believe we're going to face tougher pitching than we've faced all year," Moore said. "And we're playing pretty good defense. We're getting outs when we need them. I'm pretty confident this year. I have a good feeling."

It's not certain Curry will start today, but it's likely the Chiefs will go with their best in an attempt to reach the state title game.

"I hope I don't," Wood said about facing Curry. "If anyone wants to throw their two or three, I'll be tickled. But we're going to go with what we feel is doing our best right now."

Curry has a 10-0 record and 0.93 ERA. He has struck out 89 batters and walked just 10 over 60 2/3 innings.

The Chiefs also have a pair of right-handers in junior Chad Tieman (3-0, 1.68) and sophomore Keaton Graf (5-1, 2.12). Graf has struck out 58 batters over 33 innings.

The trio also accounts for Santa Fe's top offensive weapons along with senior first baseman Dalton Wilkinson, who leads the team with 39 RBIs and is second with a .444 batting average. Curry has a team-leading .467 average and six home runs. Wilkinson and Graf both have five homers.

Santa Fe is on a 16-game winning streak since its only loss to Concordia, which was ranked No. 2 in Class 1 earlier this month. Santa Fe's schedule consisted exclusively of Class 1 and 2 schools with the exception of Class 4 Ruskin.

"You don't go anywhere losing one game and not be very good," Wood said. "They've played some good teams.

"We'll have to play one of our better games, but the one thing I can tell you is it's not going to be anything we haven't seen. We played a pretty nice schedule for a 1A school. We've seen some good teams this year. We've been faced with some challenges."

Only one of Oran's nine losses has come to a Class 1 school, and the Eagles avenged that defeat with a 6-3 victory against Cooter in the sectional round.

The Eagles followed that with a 4-1 victory against Naylor in the state quarterfinals to extend a winning streak that started in district play to four games.

"We've really jelled these past couple of weeks," said senior center fielder Blake Carlyle, who leads the Eagles with a .446 batting average and is second with 27 RBIs.

Wood said senior Dalton Elfrink (6-1, 2.65) likely will get the start today. Elfrink leads the team in wins, followed by sophomore Seth Ressel (5-3, 2.48) and Moore (4-1, 3.00).

Moore has been used in relief of Elfrink and Ressel in the playoffs, and the combination has been effective. Moore relieved Elfrink in the sectional game and recorded the win, then picked up a save in the state quarterfinals in relief of Ressel, who notched the win.

"It seems like it took all year for us to jell," Moore said. "I feel like we are jelled now. We came alive and came together at the perfect time."

The pitchers also are among Oran's main offensive threats. Moore has belted five of the Eagles' eight home runs and has a team-high 29 RBIs. Elfrink has 26 RBIs, while Ressel is second in batting at .400.

The Eagles are making their 11th final four appearance after finishing third in Class 1 last year.

"This year, I think it plays to our advantage being up there last year," Moore said.

Oran has the distinction of never having placed first or fourth at the final four. The Eagles have finished second three times and third seven times.

The winners of today's games meet in the championship game at 1 p.m. Thursday. The third-place game will be played at 10 a.m. Thursday.