Blair Oaks saved its best for last during Friday night's Jamboree at Vivion Field.
So did Jefferson City.
The Falcons pitted their ace pitcher, Jason Rackers, against the Jays' Jacob Weirich in the last of three exhibitions, each consisting of three innings.
"We don't play Jeff City in the regular season. We didn't want to throw him against Helias or Fatima because we play them in the regular season," Blair Oaks coach Travis Henke said. "I talked to coach (Brian) Ash and he said they were going to do the same thing.
"We just had a good little showcase at the end of the night and we were good to go."
Rackers came out and retired the side in his inning of work, striking out the first two batters he faced.
"Just coming off basketball season, he's only been throwing for about a week now," Henke said.
Weirich also pitched a shutout inning against the Falcons, but Thomas Verslues roped a single to left field off the Jays' all-state pitcher.
"We have high hopes for him too," Henke said of Verslues. "He's a senior leader that'll need to step up and have a spark in the lineup for us."
The Jays won 4-1 in the three-inning battle. Blair Oaks scored its lone run in the third when Ryan Paschal reached on an infield single, scoring Ethan Rackers.
The Falcons started the night with a 2-0 win against Fatima. The game was scoreless until the top of the third when Bryce Kempker hit a sacrifice fly to drive in the first run. Paschal also had an RBI single in the inning.
Mason Gipe made a diving catch in right-center field to rob Fatima of a base hit, one of the few instances of flashy defense on the night.
"He made a heck of a play out there for us," Henke said.
Blair Oaks lost 5-2 against Helias, but Henke was pleased to see his team succeed on a safety squeeze attempt by Kempker to score Gipe.
"This is the time and the place to do it," Henke said. "In a Jamboree, we can practice things that we may not get to in a game."
Blair Oaks opens the season next Saturday at Camdenton. The Falcons face Eugene at noon and the Lakers at 2 p.m.
"They were excited, and it's tough to get excited when it's 39 degrees," Henke said. "They were excited to get back on a ballfield again and play against different teams."