KEARNEY — A former Kearney baseball player will once again don a Bulldogs logo, this time for the recently crowned Division I national champions.

Editor’s Note: The Courier-Tribune’s Boys and Girls Athletes of the Year for Liberty, Liberty North, Kearney and Smithville were selected by sports writer Mac Moore based on his opinions from covering the teams and using insights provided by area coaches when available.

Five area baseball players earned all-state first team honors from the Missouri High School Baseball Coaches Association while five others earned all-state recognition on either the second team or honorable mention.

Twenty-two area baseball players earned academic all-state honors from the Missouri High School Baseball Coaches Association.

Courier-Tribune’s All-Area Teams were selected by sports writer Mac Moore based on his opinions from covering the teams and using insights provided by area coaches when available.

LIBERTY — Liberty baseball found a way to maintain all of its momentum from the end of its semifinal as it shell-shocked the top-ranked Missouri Class 6 team in Ft. Zumwalt West in the early going.

LIBERTY — Liberty baseball earned a spot in the state finals with a 8-2 victory over Christian Brothers College Friday, June 4, at U.S. Ballpark in Ozark.

LIBERTY — Liberty baseball took advantage of a fourth-inning scoring surge to power past Raymore-Peculiar and advance to the Missouri Class 6 baseball final four.

SMITHVILLE — Smithville baseball’s magical run came to an end in the Missouri Class 5 state quarterfinals after a 7-3 loss to Grain Valley on Saturday, May 29 at Blue Springs South High School.

LIBERTY — This year’s fourth edition of the Crosstown Showdown in baseball looked like it would become another pitching duel between Liberty and Liberty North.

SMITHVILLE — Smithville baseball put a punctuation point on its dominant season by winning the district title with a shutout victory over rival Kearney.

Smithville baseball earned a 4-1 win over Highway 92 rival Kearney Monday, May 10 at Kearney High School.

LIBERTY — Liberty baseball outlasted Liberty North in a back-and-forth battle that required extra innings on Saturday, May 8, but the Eagles weren’t down for too long as the team clinched the Suburban Gold conference championship this week.

Smithville — Smithville baseball swept Platte County as the Warriors take their winning streak to 16 games.

SMITHVILLE — Smithville baseball soundly defeated Raytown South 13-0 in five innings on Monday, April 26, to improve the team’s win streak to 11 straight games.

KEARNEY — Kearney baseball placed an exclamation point on a five-game win streak with a 27-0 win over Ruskin on Monday, April 26, at Ruskin High School.

LIBERTY — The second edition in this year’s Crosstown Showdown in baseball looked nearly identical to the first installment: Two offenses that spend most every other game lighting up the scoreboard scrapped their way through seven innings against precise pitching and smooth fielding.

KEARNEY — Kearney baseball stumbled to start the Northland Tournament, but the Bulldogs quickly got things back on track as they won three straight games.

LIBERTY — Liberty baseball won all four of its games in the Northland Tournament last week, beating its final three opponents by at least nine runs.

LIBERTY — Liberty North baseball earns its eighth straight win as the team goes 4-0 during the Northland Tournament.