For the third straight season, Excelsior Springs coach Aaron Holst and his Tigers played in a Class 4 sectional baseball game. This season, the Tigers faced St. Michael theArchangel, a Lee’s Summit-based private school, falling 2-0 Tuesday in Raytown. The season-ending loss followed the Tigers’ sectional appearances in 2023, when they placed third at state; and 2022, when they reached the state quarterfinals. Tuesday’s loss “was obviously frustrating,” Holst stated Wednesday via text message. “We left 11 runners on base and just never got the big run-scoring hit,” he commented. The Guardians, who advanced to play Benton of St. Joseph Thursday, “played well, turning two double plays and stealing another hit from us in the six-hole,” Holst stated. In addition, Excelsior Springs failed to capitalize on two St. Michael errors and Kaelan Bedford’s excellent pitching, he stated. Excelsior Springs finished ...