Editor’s note: Extracurricular activities, including athletics, for Jefferson County public schools have been postponed until at least April 23. The Leader will present spring sports previews on the presumption that the seasons will be held this spring, with a different team in the county featured at 2 p.m. each day. For updated information, continue to check myleaderpaper.com.
TOMORROW: Herculaneum
Northwest High has four players who have made college commitments to play baseball.
With the 2020 spring prep season sidelined because school districts across the state have either suspended classes or called them off altogether because of a the COVID-19 global pandemic, those four Lions are very much in limbo about whether or not they’ll get to play another high school game.
Senior Kody Eddings, a pitcher and infielder, has committed to William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa. In a team-high 82 plate appearances last season, he hit. 310. He was selected to the all-Suburban Conference Green pool second team.
Senior Ben Bradow will attend Central Methodist University in Fayette this fall. A second-team all-conference utility player last year, he’s been pegged for the top of the Lions’ rotation this year. Bradow led Northwest with 14 RBIs and posted a 3-2 record on the mound.
Junior Austin Jerger chose to go to John A. Logan College in Carterville, Ill. After being named to the all-conference team in 2018, Jerger missed most of last season with an injury.
Matt Gilbers, a senior, is the fourth Lion with a commitment to a college, Harris-Stowe State University in St. Louis. Gilbers is one of the anchors of the pitching staff, which also includes senior Justin Thompson. In 22 innings in 2019, Gilbers was 2-1 with a 2.55 ERA.
Another senior, catcher-outfielder Austin Wilkins, is a two-time all-conference performer.
“We will have a very good balance of power and average,” Northwest head coach Kyle Wampler said. “We have been working on cutting down on strikeouts from last year. With so many guys with varsity experience, we practice on more specific things the first two weeks of practice, like getting more full-speed reps.
The Missouri State High School Activities Association has said it will work with local school districts and county health authorities to determine whether the season will start, and when.
The Lions finished 6-17 last year after losing to Poplar Bluff in the Class 5 District 1 tournament. They are in the same district in 2020.