The two smallest classes begin tournaments today

Saxony Lutheran sure knows how to get a sports program started.

The Crusaders' first varsity program, boys cross country, finished fourth at the state meet to conclude its first season and won the Class 1 state title this past fall.

The basketball program has had winning records each of its first two seasons, and Saxony Lutheran also sent six athletes to the state track meet last year.

So it should be no surprise Saxony Lutheran -- playing its first season of baseball -- has earned the No. 1 seed in the Class 1 District 3 tournament at Leopold, which begins today with a play-in game.

"It's been amazing," Saxony Lutheran coach John Beaudean said. "They surprise me every day."

Through the regular season, Saxony Lutheran is 10-4 using a roster consisting predominantly of underclassmen. The Crusaders own wins over district opponents Oak Ridge, the fourth seed; Meadow Heights, the third seed; and Zalma, the ninth seed.

"Start of the season, our goal was to approach the regular season as spring training and see what happens in district," Beaudean said. "My main goal was to be .500."

District 3 could turn out to be one of the more wide-open tournaments in the state. Valley of Caledonia is the defending district champion, but only garnered the sixth seed in the nine-team field.

"I would say it's completely wide open," Leopold coach Mike Qualls said. "Certainly there's no overwhelming favorite."

Saxony Lutheran will face the winner of today's Lesterville/Zalma play-in game Monday at 2 p.m. Other quarterfinal matchups include Leopold vs. Viburnum, Oak Ridge vs. South Iron and Meadow Heights vs. Valley.

"We're just going to approach it one game at a time," Beaudean said. "No one expected us to get a No. 1 seed, so we're doing things from this point out that no one expected us to do."

Standing in Saxony's way could be host Leopold (9-8), the second seed. The Wildcats are looking for their second ever baseball district title, with their only district crown coming in 2000.

"We feel like we have a chance if we can play better defense, that's going to the be key for us," Qualls said.

In the Class 1 District 2 tournament hosted by Chaffee, top-seeded Advance will try to end Oran's three-year state-playoff run.

Advance will play Richland in the opening round on Monday. Oran is seeded second.

"We're kind of excited about it," Advance coach Bob Moses said, "but on the other hand all the seed affects is when you play."

The Hornets (15-2) began the year 14-0, and have lost only to Scott City and Twin Rivers. Along the way, the Hornets defeated Oran 8-5 on April 20.

Advance has not won a district title since securing back-to-back crowns in 2001 and 2002.

"I think the kids have some confidence, their confidence level is pretty good," Moses said. "But they're smart enough to know everybody can beat everybody."

Don't count the Eagles out just yet, as Oran (15-7) has been playing better of late. The Eagles also still have several players who have helped Oran qualify for the state final four each of the past three seasons, including a state runner-up finish last year.

Kelly will look to defend its district title when the Class 2 District 2 tournament begins Monday at Scott City. The Hawks are just a 10-9 but should have a strong chance to repeat as the top seed. Kelly opens with Woodland on Monday.

The host Rams have a solid pitching combo in Mark Johnston and Andy Stephens and could make a run at their first district title since 1991 as the No. 3 seed. Scott City beat Kelly 3-2 at Scott City on Tuesday.

St. Vincent has already brought home a state title in football and a second-place trophy in basketball, and a district title in baseball is certainly not out of the question. The Indians, the fifth seed, feature a solid lineup to go along with ace Alex Armbruster.

Class 1 District 2

at Chaffee

Teams: No. 1 Advance (15-2), No. 2 Oran (15-7), No. 3 Bernie, No. 4 Chaffee (5-12), No. 5 Bell City, No. 6 Delta (5-9), No. 7 Scott County Central, No. 8 Richland

Schedule: Monday, Advance vs. Richland, noon; Chaffee vs. Bell City, 2 p.m.; Oran vs. Scott County Central, 4 p.m.; Bernie vs. Delta, 6 p.m.; Tuesday, semifinals, 3 p.m. and 5 p.m.; Thursday, championship, 4 p.m.

Class 1 District 3

at Leopold

Teams: No. 1 Saxony Lutheran (10-4), No. 2 Leopold (9-8), No. 3 Meadow Heights (9-8), No. 4 Oak Ridge (7-10), No. 5 South Iron, No. 6 Valley Caledonia, No. 7 Viburnum, No. 8 Lesterville, No. 9 Zalma

Schedule: Friday, Lesterville vs. Zalma, 3 p.m.; Monday, Oak Ridge vs. South Iron, 10 a.m.; Leopold vs. Viburnum, noon; Saxony Lutheran vs. Lesterville/Zalma winner, 2 p.m.; Meadow Heights vs. Valley, 4 p.m.; Tuesday, semifinals, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.; Thursday, championship, 4 p.m.

Class 2 District 2

at Scott City

Teams: No. 1 Kelly (10-9), No. 2 Crystal City, No. 3 Scott City (7-8), No. 4 Valle Catholic, No. 5 St. Vincent (8-12), No. 6 Charleston, No. 7 Grandview, No. 8 Woodland

Schedule: Monday, Kelly vs. Woodland, 10 a.m.; Crystal City vs. Grandview, noon; Valle vs. St. Vincent, 2 p.m.; Scott City vs. Charleston, 4 p.m.; Tuesday, semifinals, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.; Thursday, championship, 4 p.m.