Jefferson, St. Pius move on to baseball district title game on KJFF

(Festus) Not even steady rain could wash away the chances of a district championship rematch between crosstown rivals.

The St. Pius Lancers and Jefferson Blue Jays braved the elements and came away with victories in the Class 3 District 4 baseball semifinals Monday on KJFF.

St. Pius knocked off Valley Park 9-1 in the first game.

The Lancers rode a big day at the plate from sophomore shortstop Andrew Merseal.

Merseal went 3-for-3 with a double, a run scored and 2 runs batted in to be the Applebee’s of Farmington Player of the Game.

Pius head coach Dan Oliver said, even with some other players injured, Merseal continues to step up.

St. Pius improves to 10-11.

In the second semifinal, Jefferson cruised past the Grandview Eagles 9-0.

While the offense generated 2 runs in each of the first 4 innings, the defense was making sure one run would be enough.

In the end, the pitching of senior Dylan Schnitzler would prove to be more than enough for the Blue Jays.

Schnitzler finished with 6 no-hit innings and struck out 11.

He also was 1-for-2 with 3 RBI at the plate.

R-7 head coach Robert Kuehnle said Schnitzler’s success isn’t surprising, but it is gratifying to have him come up big again in the postseason.

Jefferson improves to 14-8, while Grandview’s season ends with a record of 7-9.

The Blue Jays move on to face the St. Pius Lancers for the third time this season in Wednesday’s Class 3 District 4 championship game.

You can hear it on AM 1400 KJFF.

To hear the full game broadcasts again, click play below.

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