COLUMBIA – The St. Michael The Archangel Catholic wrestling team had one major goal from Day 1 of the 2025-26.
It has been a goal head coach Matt Infranca has been chasing since the program started during the 2017-18 school year – to win a state championship.
The Guardians have had the talent to contend for a state championship over the past few year, but couldn’t get over the hump. They finished in second place in Class 2 in 2024 and in fourth in Class 1 in 2022.
However, if there was a season for St. Michael to finally get that elusive state championship, 2025-26 campaign was it. The team has eight seniors and two of them have won an individual state championship before.
Seniors Parker Lutz and Landon Lane were the duo that has stood atop the podium before and they did so once again at the Class 3 Missouri State High School Wrestling Championships Saturday at Mizzou Arena. Lane captured his third state championship, while Lutz nabbed his second as they led the Guardians to their first state title in program history, scoring 172.5 team points.
“These kids wrestled really well in this tournament and wrestled really loose,”Infranca said. “We have a senior-heavy team, so we have a lot of leadership.”
St. Michael was locked in the three-horse race with Kearney (155.5 points) and Helias Catholic (141), who finished second and third, respectively. Hillsboro was fourth with 92 points.
Lane (113 pounds) and Lutz (126) have been the heart and soul of the St. Michael wrestling program for the past four seasons, and were the driving force behind the state title breakthrough.
“It’s been really cool to see them develop,” Infranca said of his senior duo. “Parker said today it was a great decision for them to come to St. Michael and wrestle. I appreciate that. They have really been leaders.”
Lane took a moment to ponder what just happened following his 2-0 victory in the championship match against Hillsboro sophomore Carter Pryor in the 113-pound bracket.
He pointed up to the sky as he was on his knees, acknowledging his father Charlie Lane, who died from cancer on Sept. 4, 2024. He then took a few seconds to take it all in as he realized his high school wrestling career was over after three state championships.
He then threw assistant coach Steffon Fassett to the mat for a celebratory takedown before giving the rest of his coaches and teammates hugs with tears in his eyes.
“It was really surreal, it’s like something you dream of,” Lane said. “It’s crazy to see it all come to an end but a new chapter is starting.”
Winning a team state championship was even more exciting for Lane.
“I get to see my guys thrive and succeed,” Lane said. “It’s more exciting for me because I have already seen my success. It was cool to see the people I train with and put in work to find success of their own.”
Lutz was one of those guys as the senior earned his first state title since his sophomore season. Last season, he finished third, but this season he bounced back in a big way.
The 126-pounder dominated his championship match with Carl Junction senior Camden Kunkel as he had four takedowns, a four-point nearfall and an escape to capture a 17-2 tech fall win in 3:03.
After the match, Lutz acknowledged the St. Michael fans in the crowd, and he then did a cartwheel and a back flip.
Lutz described himself as “scrawny,” and said Kunkel was stronger than him, but he had no issues avoiding takedowns and getting some of his own.
“He was short, but he was stronger,” Lutz said of Kunkel. “I am pretty scrawny. I just trusted in my attacks and believed in myself. I train all year for this one opportunity.”
The senior will now move on to wrestle at Morningside University in Sioux City, Iowa.
“Over the four years (at St. Michael), I wish I could have learned lessons earlier so I could have won three or even four state titles. I am happy with the ups and downs. It makes the journey fun.
“I am excited to go to Morningside with Austin (Stevick). It will be nice to have a buddy to lean on when I go up there.
The Guardians had three runner-up finishes from senior Presley Hartwig (138), senior Brody Narron (157) and sophomore Cole Sackett (165).
Hartwig, who is a transfer from Olathe Northwest High School in Kansas, had a strong impact for the Guardians this season. He ended his season with a 34-13 record as he fell to Warrensburg senior Jaylen Civil by a 24-8 tech fall.
Narron, who is in his second season with the Guardians after transferring from Father Tolton Catholic in 2024, took second following a 9-8 loss to Kearney junior Kale Davis.
Sackett made it to the finals for the second consecutive season, but this time he fell to Belton senior Quinten Attebury 10-2.
Freshman Luke Bulloc (106, fourth place), Stevick (144, fourth) and junior Rowdy Narron (150, third) also earned medals and contributed to the Guardians’ team title.
Now that the Guardians won a title at the Class 3 level, Infranca acknowledged the possibility of his team being bumped up to Class 4 next season since St. Michael is a private school. St. Pius X in Kansas witnessed a similar fate for the 2025-26 season after it won a state title in Class 3 in 2025.
“Here we come,” Infranca said with a grin. “We will be a little bit younger next year, but we will find a way to compete. From Day 1, we wanted to be Class 4, and we will finally be making the jump.”
Below is a summary of the championship matches and a list of all state medalists:
106: Kearney freshman Tyler Bell led 6-1 after the first period in his championship match with Hillsboro freshman Tucker Williams and that built enough of a cushion for him to hang on for a 9-6 victory for his first state title.
State medalists:
1st Place – Tyler Bell of Kearney
2nd Place – Tucker Williams of Hillsboro
3rd Place – Immanuel Matteson of Whitfield
4th Place – Luke Bulloc of St. Michael the Archangel
5th Place – Bryant Brown of Mehlville
6th Place – Zane Homan of Helias Catholic
113: Lane won the championship match 2-0 against Pryor.
State medalists:
1st Place – Landon Lane of St. Michael the Archangel
2nd Place – Carter Pryor of Hillsboro
3rd Place – Mason Pullen of Ft. Zumwalt South
4th Place – Brayden Robinson of Kearney
5th Place – Brandon Gerhardt of Willard
6th Place – Nathan Donovan of Warrenton
120: Hannibal senior Austin Brown ended his career with two state titles as he blanked Hillsboro senior Evan Litzsinger 10-0 in the title bout.
State medalists:
1st Place – Austin Brown of Hannibal
2nd Place – Evan Litzsinger of Hillsboro
3rd Place – Daemen Duemmel of Helias Catholic
4th Place – Landon Westfall of Kearney
5th Place – Nolan Londe of Whitfield
6th Place – Kaleb Branch of Lebanon
126: Lutz won by a 17-2 tech fall over Kunkel.
State medalists:
1st Place – Parker Lutz of St. Michael the Archangel
2nd Place – Camdon Kunkel of Carl Junction
3rd Place – Brenton Drummond of DeSoto
4th Place – Tyrre Broom of Winnetonka
5th Place – Derek Plaza-smither of St. Charles
6th Place – Nehemiah Ford of Festus
132: Warrenton junior Zayden Teson won the second period 7-0 in his match against Pacific senior, and that was what catapulted his 15-5 major decision win as he claimed his first state title.
State medalists:
1st Place – Zayden Teson of Warrenton
2nd Place – Brock Webb of Pacific
3rd Place – Gable Ohm of Washington
4th Place – Alex Wieberg of Helias Catholic
5th Place – Phoenix Shelton of Kearney
6th Place – Tyler Christensen of Webb City
138: Civil took his championship match 24-8 over Hartwig for his first state championship.
State medalists:
1st Place – Jaylen Civil of Warrensburg
2nd Place – Presley Hartwig of St. Michael the Archangel
3rd Place – James Lauf of Helias Catholic
4th Place – Julian Smith of Whitfield
5th Place – Dominick Paige of Van Horn
6th Place – Jaxson Yaple of Carl Junction
144: Ft. Zumwalt South senior Colin Weiss wasn’t challenged the entire time in his bracket and he won his state title following a 20-4 tech fall win against Whitfield senior Jackson Bassett.
State medalists:
1st Place – Colin Weiss of Ft. Zumwalt South
2nd Place – Jackson Bassett of Whitfield
3rd Place – Gabrian Bridges of Marshfield
4th Place – Austin Stevick of St. Michael the Archangel
5th Place – Gage Starnes of Lebanon
6th Place – D`Andre Watts of Jefferson City
150: Jefferson City senior Deegan Mitchell finished his season unbeaten at 45-0 as he won 1-0 against St. Charles senior D’Monta Bagby.
State medalists:
1st Place – Deegan Mitchell of Jefferson City
2nd Place – D`Monta Bagby of St. Charles
3rd Place – Rowdy Narron of St. Michael the Archangel
4th Place – Donovan Brown of Rockwood Summit
5th Place – Korbin Whitley of Hannibal
6th Place – Carson Rooks of Webb City
157: Davis edged Narron 9-8 to capture his first state title.
State medalists:
1st Place – Kale Davis of Kearney
2nd Place – Brody Narron of St. Michael the Archangel
3rd Place – Max Teson of Warrenton
4th Place – Zekey Camden of Poplar Bluff
5th Place – Gunner Puryear of Willard
6th Place – Bentley Treece of Vianney
165: Attebury claimed his first state title after earning a 10-2 major decision against Sackett.
State medalists:
1st Place – Quinten Attebury of Belton
2nd Place – Cole Sackett of St. Michael the Archangel
3rd Place – Eli Homan of Helias Catholic
4th Place – Mikel Carver of Jefferson City
5th Place – Lucas Tennyson of Pacific
6th Place – Dominic Mantia of Vianney
175: Smithville senior Tristan Waters defeated Lincoln College Prep senior Phillip Fiagan by a tech fall in the Class 4 District 4 tournament. Waters did it again in the state tournament in the rematch as Waters took a 21-5 tech fall win in 3:24 over Fiagan.
State medalists:
1st Place – Tristan Waters of Smithville
2nd Place – Phillip Fiagan of Lincoln College Prep
3rd Place – Levi Huck of DeSoto
4th Place – Ali Mohsen of Parkway Central
5th Place – Treyvontay Haire of Camdenton
6th Place – Kade Shurtz of Willard
190: Carl Junction senior Marcus Lopez-Durman notched five takedowns, including one in which he completely lifted Camdenton freshman Conaway off the mat and executed a beautiful throw as he cruised to a 16-5 victory.
“That’s my style, you know, using slams,” Lopez-Durman said. “That’s how I practice. When I get in with a shot, I like to slam them.”
State medalists:
1st Place – Marcus Lopez-Durman of Carl Junction
2nd Place – Brock Conaway of Camdenton
3rd Place – Connor Poole of Central (Cape Girardeau)
4th Place – Jameson Lyons of Belton
5th Place – Haze Middleton of Smithville
6th Place – Jayden Grindell of Windsor (Imperial)
215: Kearney junior Carter Temple is now a three-time state champion. He rode out McDonald County sophomore Stevan Benhumea in the third period and got a takedown in the first during a 4-1 win.
State medalists:
1st Place – Carter Temple of Kearney
2nd Place – Stevan Benhumea of McDonald County
3rd Place – Porter Talbot of Willard
4th Place – Brock Lepage of Helias Catholic
5th Place – Luke Jenkins of Jefferson City
6th Place – Caden Romaine of Hillsboro
285: Helias Catholic junior Zyan Knollmeyer got an escape in the second period and rode out Webb City junior Louden Bolinger in the third period to hang on to a 1-0 win for his first state title.
State medalists:
1st Place – Zyan Knollmeyer of Helias Catholic
2nd Place – Louden Bolinger of Webb City
3rd Place – JD Romero of Kearney
4th Place – Kage Stewart of Carl Junction
5th Place – Samuel Pilkinton of Raytown
6th Place – Laawk Ali of Winnetonka
