Bell City baseball team began its rise to the Class 1 final four during the fall

Bell City School District made it look easy when it granted coach Justin Simpher his wish last summer.

Simpher amended his spring baseball program, adding fall baseball.

Just like that, a Cubs team and October baseball became compatible.

What has proven mostly futile for more than 100 years on the professional level in a sprawling metropolis has worked out quite nicely on the amateur level in the small town.

Months after playing their first fall season, the Cubs have arrived in the high school version of the World Series.

Bell City not only recently claimed its first district title in 25 years, but it won the first playoff game in school history in advancing to the Class 1 final four in O'Fallon, Missouri.

While talent has much to do with the program finding new frontiers, players are not shortchanging the fall season, which Simpher noted several schools in the Stoddard County Activities Association had previously adopted.

Successful schools like Bernie, Bloomfield and Puxico had taken that fall path.

"Those were programs that were doing well, and I thought it would be a good move and see how worked for us," Simpher said.

The quick answer is: Quite well.

A Bell City program which fielded a sub-.500 team a season ago has manufactured a 23-3 record entering today's state semifinal game against Northwest (Hughesville).

Bell City players celebrate their 9-0 Class 1 sectional win against Gideon, Monday, May 25, 2015. (Laura Simon)

It's been no fluke for Bell City, which has three players batting over .400, three more over .300 and an overall team average of .331. Meanwhile, a strong Cubs pitching staff has hurled nine shutouts and posted a minuscule ERA of 1.37.

"I think [the fall season] had a very important impact on us," said pitcher Austin Hicks, who has established himself as the staff ace in his sophomore season with an 8-0 record and 0.86 ERA. "It really helped us mature and grow as a team, I feel like. It's kind of like another spring season, really."

Making the Cubs' feats more impressive is the fact there is just one senior in the starting lineup -- left fielder Nolan Schaefer.

It's a situation that Simpher, a 2001 Kelly High School graduate who went on to play college baseball, has seen brewing in his four years at Bell City. The first two years were as an assistant, and he took over the program before the 2014 season.

"I knew we had a bunch of kids that played a lot of baseball," Simpher said. "I did know the more they got to play, and play together, it would be just a matter of time before they really stepped up and competed on the varsity and high school level. I feel [fall baseball] helped a lot, getting them to that point a little quicker."

Simpher had little problem selling the idea of fall baseball to superintendent Matt Asher, who formerly was the Cubs baseball coach, and he knew there would be no resistance among his players, who had no other fall sports options besides preparing for basketball, which has brought the school two Class 1 state championships and five final four appearances since the start of the millennium.

"We've had some success in basketball, but I think this group right here would all probably choose baseball over basketball," said Hicks, who threw a four-hit shutout in the Cubs' 2-0 victory over Dora in the Class 1 quarterfinals Wednesday. "That's just what we all grew up doing a lot. "

Fellow sophomore pitcher Bobby Wright, who struck out nine Gideon batters in a 9-0 victory in the sectional round, also considers baseball his first love. He wears shorts in the winter, mindful of his civic duty.

"For a small school like us, if you don't play basketball, you let down the team and it kind of holds down the whole community," Wright said.

Simpher is an assistant to boys basketball coach CJ Hadley, who played on the Cubs' first state championship team in 2002 and supported the move.

"Our coach was real understanding," Hicks said. "He told us we could practice baseball as long as we got our basketball work done."

It made for some long fall days, but the Cubs followed a full day of school with baseball practice and then conditioning in the gym.

Most of the players hone their skills in summer baseball, but on different teams, and were able make a quick transition into fall ball, where they worked on swings, building strength and team unity while rebuilding damaged psyches.

"I had a lot of big thoughts my freshman year, but once we got into it, it was like, 'This is going to be a little bit harder than I think,'" Wright said. "And then sophomore year, we're like. 'We're not going to be that good this year because we weren't good last year.'"

Simpher was only able to schedule 13 games on short notice, but the Cubs went 10-3 and underwent an attitude transformation.

Bell City sophomore pitcher Austin Hicks practices indoors with the team Sunday in Bell City, Missouri. Introducing fall baseball this school year helped the Cubs turn the corner, going from a losing record in 2014 to a 23-3 mark and a trip to the Class 1 final four. (Fred Lynch)

"Our last year's team, I think we went 11-14, under .500, and no team wants to be under .500," junior third baseman Nate Finney said. "So when we came into the fall season we just wanted to get better and win some games. We ended up being over .500 by six or seven games. I think that gave us a lot of encouragement for the spring season, and we've blossomed into the team we are."

Among the fall opponents for the Cubs were Greenville, which recently won its district in Class 2, Twin Rivers and defending Class 1 champion Cooter, which paid a visit. The games were played in a low-key environment, conducive to learning and building confidence. Absent was the pressure of conference play and district tournaments that accompanies spring ball.

"We had the potential last year, but it just kind of fell apart," said sophomore pitcher and shortstop Cole Nichols, who picked up the win in the Class 1 District 2 championship game with an inning of relief in a 4-3, eight-inning win vs. Oran. "This year we just really found a way to put it all together. I think the fall ball really helped, because it wasn't like going straight into the spring season and you have to do good. We got to practice some in the fall and have a few mistakes in the fall, so we were ready for the spring season."

For some it was like spring training, for others it was more.

"It's just like having another season," junior center fielder Peyton Maddox said. "Everyone really improved and bettered themselves. We got more practices and games in. Everyone was trying to get their swings down in the fall and pick it back up in the spring. I felt like the fall ball really gave us a jump on the competition, and that whenever the spring season came, everyone was ready and knew what was expected from them."

A new year

When the spring season arrived, the Cubs debuted with a 9-8 victory over Scott City in 11 innings. It was part of a 6-0 start and one of two wins over Scott City, which is playing this week in the Class 3 final four.

"I was anxiously awaiting to see how they come out," Simpher said. "I knew and was in confident in where we could be and where we could go. It was nice to see they had taken that big step in that short time."

The Cubs' only three losses have come against two Class 2 teams that won their districts and recently had their seasons ended by defending state champion Valle Catholic. Bernie, which handed 3-0 and 2-0 losses to Bell City, lost to the Warriors in the quarterfinals, while Greenville fell in the sectional round.

All others have fallen to the Cubs, who have thrived on pitching and defense.

In addition to the nine shutouts, Bell City has held 13 other opponents to three runs or less. The Cubs have allowed one run or fewer in 14 of their 26 games. Three of their four wins since the onset of district play have been by shutout.

Finney leads the team with a .457 batting average, which is less than 10 points ahead of Hicks and Nichols.

"I had swing troubles during last year's spring season," Finney said. "I got off to a hot start and I hit a slump. I ended up a lot lower than where I wanted to be individually. In the fall season me and coach Simpher worked on my swing and my approach at the plate, and it really helped me individually. I'm pretty happy we got it straightened out."

The young Cubs have got a lot straightened out, growing into a bear for the competition.

"It's like we have another year of experience," Wright said. "We're like a step ahead of teams that didn't have fall ball. "

And just two wins away from a state title.

Class 1 final four glance

Bell City

The Cubs (23-3) have won four games in a row in reaching the final four or the first time in school history. The Cubs also have won 10 of their last 11 games.

The Cubs are batting .331 as at team, with junior third baseman Nate Finney leading the way with a .459 average. Sophomore shortstop Cole Nichols (.446) and sophomore Austin Hicks (.446) also are batting over .400. Junior center fielder Peyton Maddox (.329) leads the team with 27 RBIs.

Hicks is 8-0 on the mound with a 0.86 ERA in 65 1/3 innings. He has struck out 54 and walked 10. Wright (6-2) is second on the team in wins and has a 1.76 ERA with 66 strikeouts and 31 walks in 47 2/3 innings. Maddox (5-1) averages nearly a strikeout an inning in 44 2/3 innings and Nichols (4-0) has not allowed an earned run and has 33 strikeouts in 20 1/3 innings. Bell City pitchers have allowed just 98 hits and walked 73 batters in 178 innings, posting a 1.37 ERA. The Cubs have committed just 20 errors in 26 games.

Northwest (Hughesville)

The Mustangs (13-14) had a strange regular season, winning their first two games before dropping 11 of their next 12. They are currently on a five-game winning streak.

On offense and on the mound, the Mustangs are led by senior Trey Green, who has a team-high .519 batting average, 25 RBIs and three home runs. Green also has a team-high 11 doubles, and his 19 stolen bases are second only to senior catcher Ryan Rafferty, who has 22.

Green (4-5) has thrown a team-high 63 2/3 innings with a team-best 2.33 ERA. Green has struck out 99 and walked 26. His four wins are second to senior Truman Leicher (5-7), who has a 2.97 ERA in 54 2/3 innings. Leicher has struck out 69 and walked 26. Sophomore Chandler Crosswhite is another pitcher of note with a 3-1 record and 3.08 ERA on a team that has an overall ERA of 2.74.

Junior second baseman Alex Brockman is second on the team with 22 RBIs. Crosswhite, who plays shortstop, is batting .405, sophomore center fielder Garren Powell is hitting .386 and Rafferty is at .364 for a squad that is batting .332 overall.

Atlanta

The Hornets (13-3) have been a team of streaks all year. They are on a 10-game win streak, which came on the heels of a three-game slide after winning their first three games.

Atlanta is batting just .272 as a team, with junior center fielder Garrettt West hitting a team-high .545 in just 11 at-bats. Senior second baseman Marty Halley, who has 30 at-bats, leads Atlanta with 14 RBIs and has a .367 batting average. Senior first baseman Chase Wait (.333) is the only other Hornet batting over .300. Halley and senior third baseman Korbin Gunnels each have three home runs.

Senior Collan Thrasher leads the pitching staff with a 5-0 record and 0.92 ERA in a team-high 38 innings. He has struck out 47 and walked 14. West is 3-1with a 1.00 ERA. Halley (2-0), Wait (1-1) and junior Matt Howlett (1-1) also have seen time on the mound for Atlanta, which has a team ERA of 2.08.

Hurley

The high-scoring Tigers (22-4) are on a 14-game roll and have shown a variety of ways to win. They have a potent offense that outslugged Dadeville 15-14 in the quarterfinals, but good enough pitching to hold off Billings 1-0 in their district title game.

The Tigers have scored double figures in runs 12 times this season and feature four players with at least 30 RBIs. Senior first baseman Preston Gamble has a team-high 44, followed by junior shortstop Tucker Moore (40), junior Justice Jones (31) and senior center fielder Travis Scott (30). All but Scott are batting over .400, with Gamble at a team-high .473.

Moore, Jones and Scott have combined for a 1.08 ERA on the mound. Moore (8-3) has thrown a team-high 49 innings and leads the squad in wins and saves (4). He has struck out 95 batters and walked 10 in 49 innings. Jones (7-1) has fanned 75 and walked just five in 42 2/3 innings, while Scott (5-0) has 64 strikeouts and 15 walks in 37 2/3 innings.