With the spring high school sports season now complete, attention turns to the Mon-Clair League baseball season.

All three local teams – the Waterloo Millers, Valmeyer Lakers and Millstadt Green Machine – are at or above .500 in league play entering this weekend.

The Millers are 8-3 in league play and sit just a half game back of Monroe Division leader Belleville.

Following a 12-6 loss to Millstadt in non-league action on Friday, Waterloo dropped a 7-1 contest to the Charleston Riverdogs on Sunday. 

Millers leadoff hitter Ethan Ruff doubled and scored on an RBI double off the bat of Keegan Baxmeyer in the first inning, but that was all the scoring Waterloo could muster on the day.

The Riverdogs plated six runs in the sixth inning to emerge victorious.

Ruff is hitting .410 with nine RBIs to lead the Millers, who host Cape Girardeau for two this Saturday starting at 1:30 p.m. before traveling to Belleville for a Sunday doubleheader.

Leading pitchers for Waterloo are Parker Stidham (3-1, 2.92 ERA) and Reid Hendrickson (1-0, 0.88 ERA).

Valmeyer is 6-6 in league play following doubleheader splits against Charleston on Saturday and the St. Louis Printers on Sunday.

The Lakers lost 9-8 and won 18-8 over Charleston. Against the Printers, Valmeyer won 7-6 and lost 6-2.

The top hitters for the Lakers so far this season are Cole Juelfs (.387), Matt Reinholz (.381) and John Wuelling (.345). Tyler Brinkmann has also been hitting well of late.

Leading the way on the mound for Valmeyer are Philip Reinhardt (1-1, 2.92 ERA) and Jacob Hill (2-1, 4.91 ERA).

The Lakers play at Fairview Heights for a Saturday doubleheader starting at 1:30 p.m. before hosting Millstadt for two on Sunday.

Millstadt is 5-5 in league play after splitting a doubleheader with the St. Louis Spikes on Sunday. 

Cal Kossina tossed a complete game six-hitter in a 2-0 victory for the Green Machine. He also went 1-for-3 with an RBI.

Millstadt dropped a 7-6 contest after the Spikes plated four runs in the sixth inning and two more in the seventh.

Tony Kossina went 4-for-4 with two stolen bases and Cal Kossina hit two doubles in the loss. Recent Gibault graduate Mark Branz added a single and two RBIs for Millstadt.

The top hitter for Millstadt this season is Matt Janocik, who is hitting .400.

The top pitchers for Millstadt so far this summer are Andrew Yancik (3-0, 1.08 ERA in 26 innings) and Cal Kossina (2-1, 2.92 ERA in 24 innings).

Millstadt plays a Saturday doubleheader at Belleville before playing a Sunday twinbill at Valmeyer.

The annual Valmeyer Midsummer Classic baseball tournament will feature all three local teams and others at Borsch Park. 

The tourney begins Thursday, July 4 and runs through Sunday, July 7.