The loaded 2025 senior class for the Staley wrestling team got one last hurrah Tuesday.
This season, the Falcons had 16 seniors on the team, with 11 of them being in the lineup and five earned a state medal. Five Falcons also were selected to be a part of Team Missouri in the annual Metro Classic at Avila University.
The Metro Classic is an event that features some of the best senior high school wrestlers in the Kansas City Metro area on the Kansas and Missouri side.
Four out of the five Staley wrestlers earned wins Tuesday to help Team Missouri dominate Kansas 54-15.
For Staley senior Merrik Murray, he just wanted to relish the moment to have one last dual with some of his teammates like Sage Wilson, Parker Leverknight, Zayne Reynolds and David Gleason.
“I wasn’t worried about the result, I just wanted to come out with my guys and have one last ride,” Murray said. “I had my teammates from Staley here and I grew up with some of the other guys (on Team Missouri).
“I got a lot of enjoyment out of it. I thought state was going to be my last thing then we found out we were coming here and I am like, ‘Let’s go!”
Murray (165 pounds) had one of the many impressive showings for Missouri as he got a headlock on Grayson Hagan of Lawrence Free State and got a pin in 4:51 after building a 12-1 lead.
“I am pleased with the progress I have made and how much I have grown up,” Murray said looking back on his career.
Reynolds, like Murray, took in the moment to compete in the all-star wrestling dual.
“It was great practicing with the other Staley guys and the others I grew up with,” Reynolds said. “It was a great experience.”
Reynolds (120) used a cement mixer to pin Olathe East’s Aiden Stewart. His teammate, Parker Leverknight (113), also got a pin over Nick Williams of Shawnee Mission West.
