Pair of 2-time state qualifiers to lead Platte County in wake of departed senior class

Platte County placed seventh in the final standings of the Class 3 Missouri State Wrestling Championships each of the past two seasons behind a deep and experienced senior class.

The outlook will be much different in 2022-23. The Pirates will have to turn to a uniquely experienced but mostly unproven lineup that will feature juniors Jake Fernandez (215 pounds) and Caden Hulett (113) — returning qualifiers with bonafide credentials to lead a deep roster with plenty of options but not many locked-in starters.

Only six of 13 return from last year’s postseason lineup, and a fortified Class 3 District 4 field this season adds Belton and Helias — two strong squads that will only up the difficulty to advance to state.

“What I want is for them to come to practice every day and figure out a way to get better,” Platte County veteran coach Reggie Burress said. “And by getting better, I think it’ll give us a good opportunity to compete for a conference title, go to districts and get as many kids through (to state) as we can — even kids who aren’t supposed to make it on paper right now. By the time we get there, they need to be ready.”

Platte County’s seven state qualifiers produced four medalists, three finalists and two champions, most notably with Fernandez (220) and Jaydon Walls (195) earning the program’s first individual titles since Cody Phippen won his third and Sage Smart his first in 2018.

In addition, four-time state medalist Eli Rocha (138) finished as runnerup, and his appearance in the finals made him the first finalist for the Pirates since that same season four years earlier.

Technically, Walls — a two-time state medalist and three-time qualifier — ended the state championship drought in the final match of his career minutes ahead of Fernandez writing an impressive finish to the second year of his blossoming career. He went 1-2 at state as a freshman at 182 but started to realize his potential late last season, starting with a District 4 title — sending him to state as a No. 1 seed for a second time.

After two dominant wins to reach the semifinals and guarantee a medal, Fernandez (34-8) produced a pair of memorable finishes to finish off his run. First, Burress helped overturn a potentially match-deciding takedown for McDonald County sophomore Samuel Murphy on the technicality of the move finishing on adjoining mat with an active match.

The match eventually went to tiebreaker periods, and Fernandez scored an escape and added a penalty point on Murphy’s second stall warning. He then rode out the final 30 seconds for the two-point win.

The next night Fernandez secured the winning point in a 2-1 decision with Van Horn senior David Lewis called for a grabbing-the-head-gear penalty while in the midst of a potential winning takedown. Weight classes have shifted this year, and Fernandez will be at 215, rather than 220 but will enter the season as one of the top returners.

“Last year, I think he could have made (195) any time we wanted him to,” Burress said. “This year, he’s going to be a full 215 — stronger. His hands are heavier; his hips are bigger. I see him being able to defend a lot better when people attack him. His leg attacks, his mentality is getting a lot better. You’re a state champ, but you’re still developing confidence, especially as a sophomore winning it.”

Like Fernandez, Hulett has been to state twice, as well, but went 1-2 in the 106 bracket for a second straight season. Both times he opened with a win, only to lose in the quarterfinals and bow out in the second round of the consolation bracket. He owned wins against the fourth-, fifth- and sixth-place finishers at state.

Hulett finished with a 24-14 record last year against a very difficult schedule and will move up just one weight class this season. He also benefits from a new practice partner in freshman Grant Fadler, who could possibly make the biggest impact among a large group of first-year wrestlers.

“Hulett and Fadler have been drilling together, and it’s been helping both of them a lot,” Burress said. “Fadler makes Caden move his feet more laterally so it’s going to help him out with his offense, and Grant’s a great hand-fighter. Grant has to really set up his shots to get to Caden’s legs so that’ helping him.”

Beyond the returning qualifiers, Platte County seniors Draiden Chilcoat (144 or 150 pounds), Bryan Jennings (157 or 165 pounds) Mar’Ques Brown (285) have the most experience while fellow senior Alexander Escaping-Fillmer (120) also wrestled at District 4 in his first year with the Pirates.

Jennings (17-14) and Chilcoat (15-18) both reached the consolation semifinals and missed state by just one win after locking up varsity spots late in the year. Escaping-Fillmer (7-25) made a surprising run to the same round at 120 with two of his wins coming at districts.

Brown (10-24) went 0-2 in a followup to a promising sophomore season where the occasionally showed potential but ultimately missed out on a breakthrough.

“I think there’s a lot of talent there. There’s some good experience there,” Burress said. “Maybe they haven’t made it to the state tournament yet, but some of them made it to the bubble match. Hopefully with our schedule and preparation, we can get them past that bubble match and into the state tournament.”

There should be some stiff competition for spots in the middle of the lineup.

Burress expects Platte County to feature freshmen Gabriel Wittel (106) and Grant Fadler (126) at the lower weights. Fadler in particular boasts impressive youth experience and should make an immediate impact. The Pirates also have high expectations for junior Shane Leary (132), who contributed to a team district title as a freshman but was on and off the team a year ago and had a record of 4-2 in limited action, and sophomore Evan Maccuish (10-19) — a starter much of last season before Chilcoat ultimately won the spot at 132.

The next five weight classes could all have multiple options.

Chilcoat and fellow seniors Davud Olson (8-4) and Peyton Nickell (10-9) all have varsity experience and likely could be in contention for time at 144 and 150, while Jennings and sophomore Darrell Smith likely will be in some combination at 157 and 165. Smith featured at 152 much of last season, especially early, and boasts unmatched athleticism. He went 16-14 as a freshman.

“They all push each other, and at some weights, there’s three or four of them fighting for a couple spots so it’s good to have that kind of competition in the room,” Burress said.

Fernandez clearly leads the upper weights with freshman Cole Johnson and senior Andrew Gjoni the top candidates at 175, freshman Quinn Lightle the likely starter at 190 and Brown and sophomore Kameron Doyle (5-8 as a freshman) each likely to see time at heavyweight. Gjoni returns after missing all of last year due to injury but does have some varsity mat time.

The additional depth will be important for Platte County, which dealt with injuries to four key seniors last year before losing Brody Lueders — a junior not back this year due to an injury — to an appendectomy late in the season. He would’ve been at 126 but instead lett the Pirates open at that weight in the postseason.

“I do feel really good, especially with the practices we’ve had already,” Burress said. “Some of the seniors have been a lot more focused than they have in the past. We’ve slowed some things down with technique, and even some of the upperclassmen look sharper and more prepared. We’ll keep hammering that out.”

Platte County featured six seniors last season with five advancing to state even with Rocha, Jared Parsons (145), Ben McDaniel (160) and Trevor Scott (182) all missing key stretches due to injury. Only Scott — a first-year wrestler — didn’t reach state, and he impressively reached the district consolation semifinal round that featured only one win for the Pirates.

Rocha became a rare four-time state medalist and reached the 138-pound championship bout for his first state finals appearance to cap an impressive career.

Walls mostly cruised through four wins to earn a state title after finishing third as a junior. He was a three-time qualifier who missed all of his sophomore season due to injury.

Blaine Keuhn (170) captured a second straight fifth-place medal in his third trip to state. He opted not to wrestle as a sophomore following a successful freshman campaign but returned for two very successful seasons.

Parsons started three seasons and reached state as a sophomore and senior, recording three total wins in those appearances, while McDaniel went 1-2 in his lone state competition after making the District 4 finals following back-to-back heartbreaking postseasons in 2020 and 2021. In fact, he would’ve reached state in 2021, but COVID-19 protocols reduced the number of qualifiers and excluded the fourth-place district finishers from advancing under normal circumstances.

“We fell a little short last year, but still had a really good state tournament,” Burress said. “At the end of the day, seventh at state wasn’t what we wanted, but it’s still pretty good.”

A few district and state disappointments kept Platte County from the fourth Class 3 team state trophy in program history. The Pirates went into the finals with a chance to catch Farmington for sixth place but couldn’t overcome the numbers game.

Eight teams went to state with more than Platte County’s seven qualifiers, and even with four semifinalists, the Pirates’ 89 points were 13 back of fourth-place Jefferson City. Fernandez and Hulett combined for 28 of those points, showing just how much work must be done to make another run at the top 10.

Platte County finished third in Class 3 District 4 last season behind Jefferson City, which dropped down from Class 4 for the first time and returns this season after finishing fourth at state. Belton (22nd place at state in Class 4) and Helias (second place at state in Class 2) replace Hannibal and William Chrisman — the seventh- and eighth-place teams in District 4.

In addition, Kearney, which bested Platte County for the runnerup spot by 1 1/2 points, Smithville, Capital City and Van Horn also return strong contingents in what will likely be by far the deepest district field in Class 3. The Pirates totaled 162 points and have 60 of those back but with plenty of other experienced faces that have potential to contribute this season and make big strides.

“I feel like we’ll go out and compete every day, and a lot of young kids are on this team,” Burress said. “We’ve got some seniors who can make their impact, but as you look down into the eight grade, seventh grade, sixth grade, these kids can all link themselves together and get Platte County back to that team trophy chase. That’s what we want to do.”