Even though the Wellsville-Middletown baseball team didn’t get a victory this season, it got strong efforts from all of its players from its first game on March 18 to its last on May 13.

“The whole year, I will say that the boys worked really hard,” said Alex Thull, who wrapped up his second year as W-M coach. “They’re a bunch of grinders. It’s not just (on the baseball field). It’s in the weight room and it’s in their other sports.”

The Tigers finished 0-16 this spring, their first winless season since 2013. Their season ended the same way it started. W-M lost to Community R-6 15-0 in Class 1, District 9 quarterfinal game on May 13. Two months before, the Tigers lost 15-0 to the Trojans in their season opener on the road.

A year ago, W-M finished 9-9, but lost six players to graduation, including three all-Eastern Missouri Conference performers in Mason Guzy, Dylan Alsop and CJ Curd.

The Tigers had several players who participated in baseball for the first time. They had six freshmen on their team – Shane Joles, Gage Nichols, Evan Bryson, Cameron Pittker, Willard Shireman and Jimmie Mitchell. Cooper Henderson, a junior, played baseball for the first time.

W-M had six returning players in seniors AJ Sherwood and Tristin Hill, juniors Brennan Cash, Haskell Davis and Justin Beabout and sophomore Isaac Todd. Cash earned all-district honors last year.

“Graduating that many players and replacing that many players is very difficult, especially in this conference,” Thull said. “Early in the season, we really struggled to find our roles and get the young guys to figure out where they belong and where they play best. It was a struggle in the beginning. The guys’ confidence was kind of all over the place. They were unsure of where they fell in the lineup and what they needed to do.”

The Tigers scored just 12 runs this season. They were held scoreless in their first four games before scoring three against North Callaway on April 4.

Thull said his team showed signs of improvement in the final weeks even though it was still struggling for victories.

“As the season progressed, those people who have watched us noticed there has been a huge uptick in production,” the W-M coach said. “Their confidence level was boosted. They were playing much better as of late.”

Thull said both Sherwood and Hill will be missed. When Sherwood was a freshman, he helped the Tigers capture a district championship. Hill played with the program for three years.

“Both of them have been very impactful to this program,” Thull said. “AJ is a great mentor. He really holds kids accountable. Tristan is that kid you always look at. Tristan has not been one of our star players, but he always does the little things right. He always works his hardest and always backs his guys up. He sprints the ball all of the time. That’s the kind of effort a freshman really learns. We had really good seniors. It’s sad to see them go, but they’re off to bigger and better things.”

Beabout, Cash, Henderson, Joles and Davis also competed in track this year.