An Excelsior Springs-based baseball club recently brought home a fifth-place finish from the Lake of the Ozarks. The Knuckleheadz, coached by Stephen Crowley, received the honor in the 15/16-and-under division at the 2024 Youth World Series. The ballclub went 1-2 in pool play and 2-1 in bracket play of the June 12-16 competition. “We fought through multiple injuries, and even though we didn’t make it to the right side of the bracket, we were proud of the way they finished the tournament,” Crowley said. The boys opened by crushing the New Athens Panthers of Illinois 19-3 June 12 at Osage High School. They then fell 5-3 June 13 at Eldon High School to the Franklin Crew, a Wisconsin-based club. They completed pool play June 14 with a 10-3 loss to the 16U NWI Indiana Shockers at Camdenton High School. After a 9-4 loss to the 15U NWI Indiana Shockers June 15 at Camdenton in the opening round of bracket play, the Knuckleheadz finished b...