Another season of O’Fallon Hoots baseball has come and gone. And while no playoff action was seen, this season did see the team post its best winning percentage since 2021.
The season started on a rough note for the Hoots. May 28 brought the season and home opener, and the Hoots suffered a 3-0 shutout loss at the hands of their rivals from across the river, the Alton River Dragons.
The Thrillville Thrillbillies came to town the following day, and dismantled O’Fallon, 13-1.
Fortunes turned on May 30 with a trip to face the Burlington Bees, who the Hoots defeated 7-2 for their first win of the year. They then returned home for another two games versus the Bees, with O’Fallon winning both of them 15-2 and 4-2. Another two wins against the Normal Cornbelters and Springfield Lucky Horseshoes brought the winning streak to five. That win over Springfield was the first game in the I3 Broadband Community Cup.
Despite being six games over .500 at 17-11, O’Fallon was unable to clinch the first half playoff, which belonged to the 21-6 Thrillville.
O’Fallon concluded the second half with a record of 12-16, good for third in the South Division.
At season’s end, the Hoots sat with an overall record of 29-27. And even though that record did not result in a playoff berth for the team, it was the organization’s best record since their 32-27 campaign in 2021.
Several players excelled with Barrett Lohman, who was named Prospect League Pitcher of the Week for week five of the season on July 2. In one game played between June 25 and July 1, the University of Health Sciences & Pharmacy pitcher threw seven innings of shutout ball, allowing just one hit while racking up 12 strikeouts and earning the win. This dominant appearance helped lower Lohman’s season earned run average (ERA) to a measly 0.81.
Two weeks later, third-baseman Bryson Lofton earned Prospect League Hitter of the Week for week seven. From July 9-15, Lofton appeared in seven games and had 24 at-bats, where he recorded 13 hits and hit a staggering .542. Five of those hits were doubles, and three of them were home runs. The Bryan College product snagged himself 12 runs batted in (RBI).
Lofton earned another piece of hardware right before the season finale on July 31. The O’Fallon Hoots booster club presented him with the Offensive Player of the Year award for the team. He also ended up fourth in the Prospect League with a .392 batting average, tied for seventh in the league in RBIs and finished in the top five in home runs.
~~~The fans kept cheering the team on and were rewarded with excellent plays during the season
