Class 3 State Wrap Up

2017 Missouri State Meet Recaps
Kyle Deeken


Festus Boys Complete the Sweep, Win Fourth Straight

Dynasties can be measured in two ways: 1) Success over a long period of time like West Plains, SLUH, or Herculaneum, or (2) Sustained success in the present-day. Current classifications of the second definition include the Fatima girls, Lee's Summit West's girls, Hermitage's boys, and the Festus boys. After a 15 year hiatus from the state meet ended in 2009, the same year as their first state ever state title, Festus has not ended a season since without a state trophy and secured their 6th championship since 2009 and 4th in a row. 

In 2016, Festus used a 16:30 average and 30 second 1-5 split to dispatch a strong Ste. Genevieve contingent, but would be saying goodbye to their entire 2-7. Coach Bryant Wright was unfazed, though, skipping over a rebuild year and going straight back for the Class 3 jugular. Returning one of the top boys in Class 3 helped and behind Max McDaniel, the Tigers came together toward the second half of the season and began to really show what it means to run for Festus right now. After a close one in '16, with only 12 points separating them from Ste. Gen, the 2017 team race was not nearly as close as Festus scored one less point but dispatched second place Warrensburg by 27 points. A top 5 in the top 25 was the key to this year's victory much like it was in '16. After McDaniel were sophomores Simon Ogle and Jonah Krieg in 19th and 20th respectively. The 2-5 men actually came through within 8 seconds of each other as senior James Ziesmer was 23rd and junior Alec Whitener was 25th. It was an impressive team win for Festus and they spoke with us afterwards:


Warrensburg was 2nd in this one on the backs of Marquette Wilhite's upset victory and an even more impressive 4th place finish from junior Colton Palmer. Behind the two in the top five was senior Nathan Manning in 29th and fellow senior Austin Burt in 35th. Warrensburg finished with 82 points as their fifth man, junior Dakota Carley, came across in 62nd. It is hard to compete with a team that puts 5 boys all-state, but Warrensburg was able to make it at least a little closer than many thought it may be. The MoMileSplit predictions were correct in this case, but that is mostly where it all ends. We spoke with the Warrensburg boys after they got their trophy and medals:


Much like their female counterparts, the Herculaneum boys have experienced an incredible amount of success over their history. Starting way back in 1975 with their first trophy, the boys have earned 32 state meet berths, earning trophies in 23 of those trips (with the 32nd and 23rd coming this year) and are 1 state title behind West Plains for the most in state history. They also have the distinction of having won the most consecutive team championships in state history when the legendary Coach Clark Wille won 7 in a row from 1977-1983. In 2017, their 2nd year back in Class 3, Herculaneum was able to return to the podium. The key to their late season success, aside from improvements from senior leader Loki Cortner (14th), was the return of super sophomore Jonathon Coffman who has recovered and returned from a nasty injury that kept him out for the first part of the season.

His 21st place finish helped lift up the Blackcats, but even bigger was junior Jacob Arnold's 26th place finish in his first ever trip to the state meet. The dreaded 26th is tough, but it is always made sweeter when it helps the team get a trophy. With sophomores Kyle Vinyard and Matt Bartosch not too far off in 43rd and 54th respectively, Herculaneum was only 15 points behind Warrensburg, but were a full 66 points ahead of surprise 4th placers Helias Catholic.The three sophomores and one junior from 2-5 bode well for Herculaneum going into 2018 as they seek to take down the Festus juggernaut.

As mentioned, Helias was the 4th place team in this one, led by sophomore Jack Crull's 5th place turnout and fellow sophomore Jenson Starr in 27th, finishing 2 points ahead of Bolivar, making it two heart-breaking 5th's for Bolivar on Saturday.
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