After leading Crystal City to three Class 2 district championships in four years, head coach Zach Weiss left to take an assistant job at Windsor, where his father, Dave Weiss, was head coach for many years. Hornet assistant Brantley Lohkamp, promoted to head coach, is in his third year with the program.
The other loss for the Hornets in the offseason was the transfer of left-handed No. 1 pitcher and all-league first-teamer Cale Schaumburg to Festus, further bolstering an impressive Tiger staff.
So far this season, the Crystal bats have gone quiet and the Hornets, who finished 6-12 a year ago, are 0-4 following an 8-1 loss at home to Brentwood on March 28. Crystal began this week in Perryville for a conference game against St. Vincent on Monday, before home games against Valley Park (Tuesday) and West County today (April 3).
“When it comes to the team’s batting, we are going to be a mix of trying to use speed and getting on base,” Lohkamp said. “We are going to produce runs through a team-oriented game where everyone needs to do their jobs and responsibilities as well as (produce) timely hitting.”
A first-team catcher last year, senior Nolan Eisenbeis is one of Crystal’s most accomplished multi-sport athletes of recent vintage. After guiding the school’s football team to consecutive eight-win seasons, Eisenbeis went over 1,000 career points for the basketball team this winter. He hit a home run in a 6-3 loss to Perryville in the baseball season-opener.
Senior Evan Wolfe and junior Kaiden Thomas give the Hornets a solid three-man rotation. Junior Hayden Westbrook and sophomore Trent Eisenbeis are the top arms out of the bullpen. In the loss to Brentwood, Wolfe fanned five Eagles in five and 1/3 innings and only three of the six runs he allowed were earned.
“When it comes to our bullpen, we have a lot of arms and guys are going to need to step up this year,” Lohkamp said.
Seniors Reed Lamar-Finch (pitcher/outfield) and Julian McGinnis (pitcher/outfield/infield) have played on the varsity since they were freshmen.
“These seniors are the backbone of our program and show what it means to be a Crystal City baseball player,” Lohkamp said. “Nolan Eisenbeis is especially one name to watch for. He had success in the other sports he has played this year and is a threat anytime he is up to bat.”
Freshmen Elliott Carter (pitcher/infield)) and Skyler Fowler (pitcher/infield/outfield), juniors Riley Hendrickson (outfield), Ricardo Pastrana (catcher/infield) and Kaiden Thomas (pitcher/infield) and senior Matt Nelson (outfield) complete the varsity roster. Pastrana, an all-conference honorable mention last year, got his first hit of the season against Brentwood.
Blackcats also in search of first win
Herculaneum is another JCAA small-schools team that’s started 0-4. After three losses at a tournament in St. Clair, the Blackcats had only one hit and were shut out 10-0 at home by Potosi on March 26.
Coming off a first-team all-JCAA selection in basketball, junior Tanner Duncan is the conference’s reigning first-team shortstop and also pitches. He allowed five hits and five runs in three and 1/3 innings on the mound against the Trojans. In the season opener March 21 against Wright City, a 7-6 loss, he had a triple, two hits and three RBIs. Duncan is one of the most durable, complete all-season athletes in the county.
Freshman Eli Strinni will be a major contributor on the mound and at second base and senior Mason Gorza brings back the skills that made him a second-team all-league choice as a utility player in 2024.
“All three of them are high-level baseball players who have played the game for a long time,” said head coach Blain Boss, who enters his second season and is also head coach of the school’s football team. “Mason and Tanner were our top two players last season.”
Duncan (2-4, 6.11 ERA in 24 innings last year), Gorza (1.65 ERA in 29 and 2/3 innings) and sophomore Austin Brinkley (12 innings, 2.92 ERA) are the three primary starting hurlers – what Boss calls his “three-headed monster” on the hill. Seniors Clayton Anderson and Riley Cox and junior Landen Miller are the top arms out of the bullpen.
Senior Steven Stenzhorn is the catcher. Sophomore Jackson Tucker and junior Jackson LaPlante man first base. Strinni, Gorza and Miller can play second.
Brinkley, Gorza and freshman Carter Ijames are splitting the duties at third. Anderson is in center field, with Cox, sophomore Chase Goodwin, Gorza and Stenzhorn rotating in the corner outfield spots.
With three runs scored in its last three games, Herculaneum is searching for answers at the plate. Boss said he has a couple of players who can hit for power, but mostly the Blackcats will be a hit-and-run style offense.
“Our team speed and baserunning will be one of the better parts of our offense,” Boss said. “We won’t be a big home-run power team, but I think we could be a gap-to-gap type team.”
The Blackcats were slated to visit Windsor (2-3) on Wednesday.
Blue Jays 2-2 during busy week
Jefferson (2-4-1) played four games last week, the first three on the road, coming away with a 2-2 split. The Blue Jays shut out Brentwood 1-0 to start the week and were blanked 4-0 at home by Valle Catholic on March 27. Jefferson began the season 0-2-1 in the North County Tournament.
Subtracted from this year’s lineup through graduation were first-team all-conference outfielders Cole Robinson and Kole Williams. But senior second-teamers Wyatt McDaniel at catcher and pitcher Nolan Naucke are back from the 2024 club that went 10-10 overall and 2-1 in league play. McDaniel has started behind the plate since he was a freshman and Naucke consistently posts quality innings.
Karson Haefner (pitcher/outfielder), Mitch Obermeyer (outfield) and Landon Weiss (pitcher/outfield) bring plenty of experience for their senior seasons.
“We have a core group of seniors that are going to make an impact on the field and with our culture,” said head coach Robert Kuehnle, in his eighth year (not counting the COVID-canceled 2020 season). “I am excited to see what these guys can do this year.”
Naucke, Sam Cook, Landon Taylor, Matt Wood and Jack Klump comprise a deep starting pitching staff, while Haefner, McDaniel, Weiss, Bo Davis, Blake Hampton, Parker Taylor and Sam Kerley come out of the bullpen.
Youthful Eagles start 0-2
When a sophomore is your most experienced player, it’s a safe bet the team faces a steep learning curve.
That’s the case at Grandview, where sophomore Brock Poole returns to fill multiple roles. The Eagles were 1-11 last year and got shut out three times.
The team’s inexperience was evident in their first two games of 2025, an 18-3 loss to Kingston (the one team they beat last year) on March 26 and a 17-1 spanking by St. Vincent two days later.
“We are young and inexperienced,” head coach Jason Kimminau said. “For many of our players this will be the first time they see varsity-quality baseball.” Kimminau is starting his second season at the helm and also is the school’s head football coach.
Michael Pemberton is the only senior on the roster. He’s joined by juniors James Bauer, Cameron Brooks, Owen Simpkins and Michael Turner. The sophomores are Syden Frazier, Max Mieger, Jaxson Peterson and Sebastian Wanninger. Freshmen Declan Curry, Blake Dugan, Mason Pemberton, Charlie Stulce and Christian Volner will get their first taste of varsity action.
Grandview visits Jefferson today for a conference game.