ELSBERRY -- The Jefferson City American Legion Post 5 Juniors finished in second place out of eight teams in the Elsberry Post 226 Memorial Weekend Wood Bat Tournament with a 4-1 record to begin their season.
The Post 5 Juniors opened the tournament last Friday with a 6-4 victory against Fike Post 499 Orange.
Jefferson City used four pitchers in the win, totaling 10 strikeouts from Jude Dallmeyer (four), Jonas Schanuth (three), Evan McCullough (two) and Drew Hart (one).
At the plate, Hart and Sam Struemph each had one hit and one RBI.
On Saturday, the Post 5 Juniors won 6-5 against St. Peters Post 313 and 12-2 against Hannibal Post 55, finishing first in their pool with a 3-0 record.
Kristopher Haley was the starting pitcher against St. Peters, striking out two batters in two innings. Struemph pitched the final four innings, striking out four batters.
Brock Buhr had two hits, including a triple, and Haley and Hart each had two RBI.
The Post 5 Juniors scored six runs in the first inning to pull away from Hannibal. Dallmeyer had two hits and three RBI, while Sam Schulte and McCullough each had two hits and two RBI.
Hayden Schlup and Owen Schellman combined to strike out three batters in four innings on the mound during the run-rule victory.
In Sunday’s bracket play, Jefferson City opened with a 15-9 semifinal win against St. Charles Post 312, scoring five runs in each of the second and fifth innings.
Haley went 4-for-5 at the plate with a double and three runs scored, while Schulte batted 3-for-4 with two doubles, three runs scored and two RBI. Schlup had two hits and two RBI and Dallmeyer drove in two runs.
Dallmeyer was the winning pitcher, striking out four batters in four innings. McCullough added three strikeouts in three innings of relief.
In the championship game, the Post 5 Juniors lost 6-4 in a rematch against St. Peters.
The Post 5 Juniors trailed 4-0 after three innings and rallied to tie the score at 4 in the sixth inning, but St. Peters scored two runs in the top of the seventh to win the championship.
Schlup pitched the first three innings, striking out two. Haley added six strikeouts in 3⅔ innings of relief.
Schlup also drove in two runs at the plate. Struemph, Schlup and Schellman each had a hit.