Since the start of the 2025-26 season, St. Michael The Archangel head coach Matt Infranca said the goal for his team is to win a state championship.
The Guardians built some momentum toward that goal last Saturday during the Oak Grove Panther Classic Tournament, which took place just two weeks before the Class 3 District 4 Tournament.
The Guardians saw four of their wrestlers win their weight divisions as they totaled 165 points to take home the team championship trophy. Grain Valley finished in second place with 137 points and Oak Grove was third with 135.5.
St. Michael was missing Brody Narron and Brodie Purtle due to some injuries and illness, but Infranca said he expects both to be ready for the district tournament on Feb. 21.
“We are wrestling well at the right time,” Infranca said. “We were missing two of our starters today, so for them to come in and do that, is great. I am happy for them. We don’t come here and go through the motions. We came here to win the tournament, and we did that.”
St. Michael junior Lance Berry was a big part of that as he got a huge win in the championship match of the 215-pound weight class. In a defensive battle with Fort Osage senior Nathan Parker, he got a reversal with 8 seconds left and he was able to hang on from the top position to earn a 2-1 victory.
Parker nearly was able to roll out of Berry’s grasp, but the Guardian junior didn’t relinquish his grasp.
“I could see it coming the whole match from bottom,” Berry said. “I was moving and it was a little risky to go for the switch, but it worked.
“I got to my double unders and I was able to hang on. (Parker) is a dang good wrestler.”
While Berry had a close match, his teammate Parker Lutz (126) dominated his weight bracket. The St. Michael senior got a pin of Brady Jones of Grain Valley in the semifinals before earning a 17-1 tech fall victory over Grain Valley senior Tyler Jones as he had four takedowns in the bout.
“I stayed pretty conservative,” Lutz said. “I didn’t blow my lunges out as much as I could have. I wrestled well and stayed in good position. He wasn’t able to get to my legs.”
Guardians senior Austin Stevick (144) is having a breakout season and he continued that in the Panther Classic. He had a pin and two tech falls. In the title bout, he got a 16-1 tech fall win over Smithville junior Kale Smithee.
“I have improved a lot since the summer,” said Stevick, who improved to 24-6 on the season. “I have put in so much work and went to all the tournaments this summer and I didn’t miss a practice.”
St. Michael senior Landon Lane (113), a two-time state champion, showed he’s still a contender for a third individual title as he won all three of his matches, including the championship bout with Oak Grove’s Atteyu Whitten in which he took a 20-5 tech fall in 3:01.
“Landon is still getting used to wrestling at 113,” Infranca said. “He’s still wrestling really well.”
Other Guardians to finish in the top three included Presley Hartwig (138, second place), Rowdy Narron (150, second) and Cole Sackett (175, second).
Below are the results of the championship matches for the other weight divisions not already mentioned:
106: Oak Grove junior Kale Martin won his first two matches by tech fall before ending his day with a pin in 3:46 over Hallsville junior Tyler Dumas in the championship match.
120: Hallsville senior Parker Crane pinned his first two opponents to set up a tough championship match with Mid-Buchanan’s Colby Schreck. Crane scored four points in the second period with a takedown and an escape to earn a 5-3 victory.
132: Grain Valley senior Zac Bleess built some momentum for districts as he earned a 18-10 major decision over Fort Osage junior Luke Staffens in the title bout.
138: Fort Osage senior Antonio Martinez improved his record to 41-4 on the season as he earned a 19-2 tech fall victory against Hartwig as he notched five successful takedowns in the match.
150: Blue Springs junior Jackson Paulsen showed he is a contender for a state championship as he improved to 37-1 following a 22-6 tech fall victory in 5:03 over Narron.
157: Oak Grove sophomore Amos Parks had a tight battle with Blue Springs South junior Caleb Hart in the champions match and he used a takedown that scored enough points for him to come away with a 4-2 victory.
165: Grain Valley junior Sjoeren Aumua is having a breakout season as he improved to 22-2 following a 19-3 tech fall victory against Oak Grove junior Everett Hargis in 3:05 in the championship match.
175: Smithville senior Tristan Waters is looking for his first state championship this season and got a stiff test in Sackett. He was able to hang on for a 7-4 victory to take first place.
190: Blue Springs South junior Cy Wilmes continued his stellar season by improving to 24-2 following a 15-0 tech fall victory against Oak Grove senior Elliott Atwell in 6 minutes.
235: Grain Valley junior Maui Sua pinned all of his opponents, including Blue Springs senior Carter Atagi in 3:04 during the championship match.
