Titles for Shute, Fernandez help Platte County’s healthy lineup lock up 2nd in Bonner Springs

BONNER SPRINGS, Kan. — Finally at full health, Platte County didn’t produce the finalists needed to make a run at the title but placed second out of 12 teams in the Dick Burns Mat Classic on Saturday at Bonner Springs High School.

Platte County senior Jake Fernandez (215 pounds) and freshman Jaxson Shute (106) both won their brackets, while senior Shane Leary (157 pounds) and sophomore Grant Fadler (132 pounds) finished as runnersup. Overall, the Pirates totaled 11 top-four individual finishes and 188 1/2 team points — 13 clear of third-place Paola (Kansas) — and benefitted from the return of returning Class 3 MSHSAA Wrestling Championships qualifiers junior Darrell Smith and sophomore Cole Johnson.

Grand Island, the only Nebraska school in the tournament, ended up running away with the team championship at 237.

Most weight classes were contested in a straight double-elimination bracket format, meaning Fernandez and Shute wrestled just three matches each. Shute didn’t wrestle more than 2 minutes, 50 seconds in any of his, opening with a quick 18-1 technical fall then pinning his final two opponents. He needed just 37 seconds to score a fall against Caul Johns of Ottawa (Kansas) in the semifinals and ended the championship bout at 2:50 against Riley Bishop of Grand Island.

Fernandez advanced to the 215 final and, like Shute, earned his first tournament title of the season. He pinned both Eli Olson of Bishop Miege (Kansas) and Carson Martin of Paola before earning a 3-1 decision over Grand Island’s Justice Hostetler in the title match. Fernandez scored a takedown with 13 seconds left in the first period before the pair exchanged escapes in the second and third period.

Leary needed a win in a preliminary match just to have a shot at the championship side of the bracket. After a 12-5 decision over Carter Peterson of Grand Island, he pinned Philiciono Rice of Highland Park (Kansas) and held off Dalton Evans of Ottawa (Kansas) in a 3-1 decision in the semifinals. Evans nearly scored a tying takedown as time expired in the midst of a lengthy scramble.

In the final, Leary lost a 10-1 major decision to Luke Steinbrugge of Lee’s Summit North, the only other Missouri team in attendance.

Fadler ended up in a six-man round robin at 132 and went 4-1 overall. The deciding match ended up being a 10-8 decision victory for Lee’s Summit North’s Preston Sunarjo in the second round with Fadler unable to close a gap late. He finished with three pins and a 7-2 decision over Kaden Schwendemann of Gardner-Edgerton (Kansas).

Platte County senior Caden Hulett (120), junior Evan Maccuish (150) and Smith (165) all finished third after reaching the front-side semifinals. They are three of seven returning state qualifiers for the Pirates.

Hulett’s loss ended up a 3-1 decision for Grand Island’s Madden Kontos, while Maccuish dropped a 12-9 decision to Lee’s Summit North’s Seth Hooper. Having missed the first month of the season due to a knee injury suffered in a preseason practice, Smith advanced out of a prelim and went 4-1 on the day with two pins, a major decision and a decision in the third-place match. He lost 5-2 decision to Gardner-Edgerton’s Ty Hammers in the 165 semifinals.

Platte County’s fourth-place finishers included sophomores Gabriel Wittel (113), Cole Johnson (175) and Quinn Lightle (285) and freshman Jack Johnson. Cole Johnson and Lightle both made the semifinals, while Jack Johnson lost twice to Bonner Springs’ Lane Vogel — in the first round and again in the third-place match.

Platte County 55, Blue Springs 18

The Pirates never trailed in a road victory Wednesday at Blue Springs High School.

While benefitting from forfeits at 113 and 106 to start and end the dual, Platte County also won 8 of 12 head-to-head matches with pins for Hulett (120), Jack Johnson (144), Smith (165), Cole Johnson (175), sophomore Cooper Hammontree (190) and Fernandez (215). The Pirates were up 12-0 after Hulett’s pin at 120, starting a stretch of four alternating results.

Blue Springs came as close as 15-12 after Fadler scored a 2-0 decision at 132, and the Wildcats came up with pins at 126 and 138. Jack Johnson’s pin and a 16-3 major decision for Maccuish at 150 provided some breathing room.

Leary lost an 8-6 decision to Greg Dillon at 157. Dillon totaled three takedowns to Leary’s one in a competitive matchup. Lightle went to overtime with Conor Tindle at 285 after both wrestlers had an escape and a penalty point in regulation. Tindle secured the winning takedown in the 1-minute sudden overtime period before Shute took the open at 106 to conclude the proceedings.