Reigning Missouri Class 6 champion Liberty North tops Nixa in semifinals to get back to title game

Arkansas signee Tate McGuire strikes out 11 in six innings

Author:
Nate Latsch, SBLive Sports
Publish date:
Jun 3, 2023 11:57 AM EDT

OZARK, Mo. – After warming in the outfield on Friday night, Liberty North righthander Tate McGuire was approached by a group of young kids who asked him for a baseball and asked for his autograph.

Then one of the rapscallions revealed his true colors.

“Nixa’s going to win,” he told McGuire.

It was a moment McGuire could chuckle about a few hours later after the reigning Missouri Class 6 champion Eagles secured a 2-1 victory over Nixa in the semifinals in front of a rowdy Sky Bacon Stadium crowd.

“Not a lot of familiar faces in here,” McGuire said.

Liberty North (33-7) was the home team on the scoreboard, but Nixa (32-7) High School is just nine miles from the stadium in Ozark and the school’s fans packed the ballpark. Liberty North High School is 195 miles away.

“There’s no better feeling than being hyped up on the mound, all the juices flowing,” McGuire said. “I know we were the home team, but it didn’t really feel like it with a lot of red in the stands. It was definitely a very energetic game. It was fun to be a part of.”

Liberty North will now play Francis Howell (31-10) in the Class 6 championship game at 7 p.m. Saturday. Howell held off a furious seventh-inning comeback attempt by Jackson for a 9-8 victory in the earlier semifinal.

The teams met in the semifinals a year ago. Liberty North edged Howell 4-3 in 10 innings before going on to beat Blue Springs South to win the program’s first state title.

“What a program,” Liberty North coach Ryan Stegall said of Howell. “Coach (Tony) Perkins does an awesome job. We were fortunate enough to get by them last year in an extra-inning game and all year long man if I picked another team that I thought we might meet up with if we could get down here it would be them. We’re excited for the challenge. We know it’s going to be a good one.”

Liberty North passed its first test against Nixa on Friday night thanks to the powerful pitching duo of McGuire and Ty Wisdom and strong defense behind them.

The Eagles scored twice in the first inning after a Nixa error with two outs extended the inning. The throwing error allowed the first run to score before junior catcher Bo Jonas, a University of Oklahoma recruit, plated the second run with a single to left field.

Those two runs turned out to be enough for McGuire and Wisdom.

McGuire (10-0), a University of Arkansas signee, allowed one run on five hits against a pesky Nixa lineup. He struck out 11 and walked two in six innings before Wisdom, a senior headed to Kansas, took over and tossed a scoreless seventh for his seventh save of the season.

“He’s been a dude all year for us,” Stegall said of McGuire. “Tate has went out, taken the ball in tough games and competes. Nothing else to say. He is the man. Anytime we can get him on the mound we feel great about our chances.”

Stegall said the run Nixa scored in the fifth, to make it 2-1, was just the second earned run McGuire has allowed in 59 2/3 innings.

“That’s how good he has been,” the coach said. “He’s been fantastic. This team (Nixa) is a really good team, too. We’ve been watching a lot of video on them. Their lineup one through nine is one of the best lineups we’ve faced all year long, so Tate went out and kept a very, very good lineup down.”

McGuire and Wisdom, who struck out two batters in the seventh, helped secure a second straight berth in the championship game for Liberty North.

“It’s awesome,” McGuire said. “It means everything to us. Obviously with the passing of Coach (Rob) James, we’re just kind of playing for him the rest of this season and kind of keep his legacy going as long as we can. It’s awesome to be back here.”

Assistant coach Rob James passed away on May 5 after a long battle with cancer. The community rallied behind him with the slogan “Ready For Battle” and the baseball team started wearing jerseys with RFB across the chest.

James’ legacy will certainly live on through the Liberty North community.

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