The winter of 2013-14 is nothing but a bad memory for many residents of the St. Louis area because of the bitter cold, snow and ice. But for CBC High School, it was a good season with thrilling successes for the Cadet hockey and basketball teams.
HOCKEY:
The championship game of the Challenge Cup Division of the Mid-States Hockey Association for the 14th consecutive season. CBC won its 13th overall title and did so in almost unprecedented fashion, finishing with a 40-1-1 record and allowing only 24 goals during the entire season. “Our team this season made a commitment to good team defense after Christmas and it really paid off,” says CBC coach John Jost. “We have an outstanding group of 10 seniors that bought into it, which made it easy for the rest to follow. Our goaltending, in particular Joe Staely, certainly helped. He was a rock all season.”
CBC put an exclamation point on its defensive masterpiece in the playoffs. The Cadets allowed a goal in their opening 6-1 win over Vianney in the quarterfinal series, which proved to be the only one CBC allowed in the playoffs. The Cadets, who won the Southwest Division I Conference during the regular season, defeated Vianney 8-0 in the other game of that series, then swept Lindbergh in the semifinals by scores of 7-0 and 8-0. They closed out the season with a 6-0 triumph over DeSmet Jesuit in the championship game at the Scottrade Center. DeSmet Jesuit reached the title game with a hard-fought win over Chaminade in the semifinals. The Spartans won both games over the Red Devils by 2-1 scores. Lafayette reached the championship game of the Wickenheiser Cup but fell to Rockwood Summit 5-2 in the championship. The Lancers had to win two minigames to reach the finals. They lost their first in the quarterfinals to Seckman 3-1 but bounced back to win 5-4 and then won the mini-game 1-0. Once again, Lafayette left no margin for error with a 4-3 loss in game one of the semifinals against MICDS before winning 5-0 in game two and 2-0 in the mini-game.
Whitfield captured the Founder’s Cup championship of Mid-States. The Warriors defeated Parkway West 5-4 in the championship game. They split their quarterfinal round series against Northwest, winning 3-2 and losing 7-1 before dominating the mini-game 3-0. Whitfield won in the semifinal series. The Warriors won game two 7-3 after a 3-3 tie in the opening game.
Ladue had an outstanding regular season, winning Central Division I. Colton Schalk led the division in scoring with 31 goals and 16 assists. Parkway South captured the No. So. Division I crown. Parkway West’s Nicholas Balestra led the league in scoring with 31 goals and 26 assists. DeSmet Jesuits Charles Combs and CBC’s Austin Rueschhoff had 26 goals each to lead Southwest Division I scorers, while Kirkwood’s Kole Mudra led Southwest Division II scorers with 23 goals and 17 assists.
BOYS BASKETBALL:
CBC, which shared the Metro Catholic Conference championship with Chaminade, closed out the winter season in style with a championship in Class 5. The Cadets won the District 3 championship with a 60-47 victory over Parkway Central and followed with an exciting 76-72 victory over Webster Groves in the sectional round.
The Cadets stamped their ticket to the Mizzou Arena and the final four with a 75-66 victory over Jackson. Jordan Barnett had 21 points to lead five CBC players who scored nine points or more. CBC shot 52 percent from the field against the Indians. The shooting was even better in an 81-68 victory over Lee’s Summit West in the Class 5 semifinals. CBC shot 60.8 percent from the field and 50 percent from 3-point land as five players finished in double figures, once again led by Barnett, who was 7-of-9 from the field en route to 20 points.
Barnett had a game for the ages in the championship match March 22 in Columbia. The University of Texas recruit had career highs in points (43) and rebounds (20), and the Cadets needed all of them in an 86-77 overtime victory over Columbia Hickman. The Kewpies battled back from a 13-point fourthquarter deficit and tied the game on a 3-point basket by Mason Murray with 28 seconds remaining, sending the title game to an extra frame. CBC dominated the overtime, outscoring Hickman 15-6.
CBC lost only one time during the regular season to a local team, Chaminade. Its other losses all came in out-of-town tournaments against out-state teams. Webster defeated rival Kirkwood 66-56 to win the Class 5 District 4 title. Lafayette, undefeated in winning the Suburban West Conference, and Ladue also won district titles in Class 5. The Lancers hit four free throws with less than a second remaining to defeat Parkway South 57-53 in the District 2 finals, while Ladue upset top-seeded Chaminade 61-58 in District 8. Both teams fell in the sectional round, Lafayette to Jackson and Ladue to Hazelwood Central.
Whitfield was the only other area district champion. The Warriors edged Maplewood 45-39 for the Class 3 District 4 championship. Webster, MICDS and Brentwood won conference titles in 2013-14. The Statesmen were 7-0 in the Suburban South. They were two games ahead of Kirkwood, Parkway Central and Parkway West, which tied for second. MICDS was 11-1 in winning the Metro League championship while Brentwood won all eight of its league contests in capturing the South Central Athletic Association championship.
Chaminade’s Jayson Tatum was the top player in the area. He was second in the entire St. Louis area in scoring with an average of 25.8 points per game.
GIRLS SWIMMING:
Marquette and Kirkwood won team trophies in the MSHSAA Girls Swimming and Diving Championships, held at the St. Peters Rec-Plex. Marquette finished a close second to Glendale. The Springfield school won with 210 points, while the Mustangs had 202 points. Senior Abby Watson, junior Raquel Porporis and freshmen Alyssa Lemon and Katiana Porporis were second in the 400- yard free relay while Watson, Katiana Porporis, senior Jessi Goring and freshman Shane Whitehead were second in the 200-yard medley relay. Marquette also had three third-place finishes in individual events: Lemon in the 2,200-yard freestyle, Watson in the 100-yard backstroke and Katiana Porporis in the 200-yard IM. Kirkwood was paced by senior Jamie Fitzpatrick. She was second in the 100-yard freestyle and teamed with junior Maggie Cox and freshmen Erin Kelly and Audrey Kelly to finish second in the 200-yard freestyle relay.
Six other area teams finished in the top 11 at state: Parkway West (fifth); MICDS (sixth); St. Joseph’s Academy (seventh); Parkway South (ninth); Lafayette (10th); and Parkway Central (11th).
Three area athletes won state championships. MICDS junior Kat Friese opened the meet by defending her state championship in diving. “Everyone loves watching Kat dive,” says MICDS coach Kristen Kaiser. “The grace and strength she shows when she is on the board is exceptional and what most people recognize. Her consistency, though, is what has made her the two-time state champion. Dive after dive, Kat continues to put great scores up and not once did I see her have an off round. We are so excited that Kat is only a junior and will be working hard between now and next year to try to defend her title as a senior.”
Parkway South senior Samm Crocker captured the 50-yard freestyle after finishing second in the event as both a sophomore and junior. “Samm’s win was a long time coming,” says Patriot coach Sara Gerth. “Everyone knew she was capable of winning it, but the 50 is such a crap shoot. Anything can happen. This year she finally just got her hand on the wall by one-hundredth of a second. I was so excited for her to have finished her high school career like this. She is a fearless competitor.” Crocker, who broke her school record for the 50 for the third year in a row, will swim next season at Northern Arizona University.
Parkway West’s Carolyn Kammeyer won the 100-yard butterfly. “Carolyn is a very talented swimmer who sets goals and pushes herself every day in order to accomplish those goals,” says Longhorn coach Allison Zeller. “At the beginning of the season, we sat down together and discussed what she wanted to get out of her high school career. Setting the school record and winning state in the 100 fly were both goals she set for herself. She is a go-getter who pushes everyone to be their best.”
WRESTLING:
Whitfield fell short in defending its Class 1 state team title. The Warriors finished with 95.5 points, and Blair Oaks won with 98 points. It was the seventh time in the last eight years Whitfield has finished in the top two at state.
“Going into the state meet, I felt that we had a shot to win, along with two or three other teams,” says Warrior coach Charlie Sherertz. “It is unrealistic to win every year but we certainly had our opportunities to win it again. We put fate in the hands of others and came up a little short.” Whitfield did not take the lead until late in the final round, when Rodney Hahn won the championship at 160 pounds. But the lead lasted only 15 minutes as Blair Oaks won the championship at the next weight class, 170 pounds. Neither team had a wrestler in the upper weight classes and Blair Oaks won by a narrow margin. “I knew it was going to be a Cinderella finish for one of two seniors,” Sherertz says. “Rodney won his match to give us the lead, but the Blair Oaks senior followed suit.”
Hahn, who was 55-0 for the season, became the first wrestler in the school’s history to win state all four years. “Rodney has a very unique style from a technical standpoint and he is just a furious competitor,” Sherertz said. Hahn will attend the United States Naval Academy in the fall. Senior Derrick Swaney stood at the top of the podium for the first time after winning the state championship at 126 pounds in a 2-0 decision over Frankie Folotico of Blair Oaks. He had finished fourth as a junior and contributed in a big way to the team title. “Derrick did not wrestle until his freshman season and just did a phenomenal job for us,” Sherertz says. “He went down a weight class in the postseason and never lost at 126 pounds.” Two other Whitfield wrestlers finished in the top six individually at the state meet: Andrew McLaughlin was fourth at 170 pounds, while Conrad Chadwick was sixth at 152 pounds.
Maplewood’s Ronelle Person was pinned in the first period of the Class 1 state championship by Caleb Osborn of Lathrop in the 120-pound title match. There were no local teams that finished in the top 10 and no local individual champions in the other three classes at state. CBC had a pair of fourth-place finishers in Class 4: Tim Gant was fourth at 285 pounds and Bay Roehr was fourth at 120 pounds. Parkway South’s Michael Aldrich (160) and Joseph Cunningham (195) were each fifth in Class 4. Webster Groves’ Lamont Wilson was the top area finisher in Class 3, fourth at 113 pounds.
GIRLS BASKETBALL:
No Erin Nelson, no Sydney Stipanovich, no Maddie Stock, no Morgan Stock … no problem for the St. Joseph’s Academy basketball team this winter.
The Angels were blessed with star players in the last several years and all are performing well at the NCAA Division I level. Many thought this would be a rebuilding season for the Angels, and it was for much of the season. St. Joseph’s found itself in foreign territory with a 4-9 record after 13 games. But the Angels got better and better as the year went on and finally broke the .500 mark with a 59-39 victory over Nerinx Hall in the district championship game. They followed with a 56-45 win over Hazelwood Central in the sectional round and had a game for the ages in the quarterfinals. It took two overtimes, but the Angels prevailed over Fort Zumwalt West 87-76. Senior guard Natalie Sims, who led the Angels in scoring during the season, led the way with 33 points. St. Joe’s had an unexpected trip to Columbia on its calendar for the final four. The Cinderella season ended there with a loss to Rock Bridge 57-46 in the semifinals. But the Angels left Columbia with a good taste as they defeated Eureka 63-59 in the third-place game.
Parkway North, St. Joseph’s Academy, Kirkwood and MICDS all won district titles this winter. Parkway North and St. Joe’s then moved on in the playoffs with victories in the sectional round.
Parkway North, which finished a game behind Webster Groves in the Suburban South Conference, won in District 3 with a convincing 54-36 triumph over Pattonville in the title game. The Vikings then defeated conference rival Kirkwood 50-40 in the sectionals. Kirkwood edged neighborhood rival Ursuline 46-42 in the District 4 title game.
MICDS had the most dominant season of any area team but had the misfortune of being matched up in sectionals with nationally ranked Incarnate Word and lost 57-44. The Rams were undefeated in the Metro League and lost only to Incarnate Word in the regular season. MICDS dominated districts, winning the Class 4 District 6 title game over Westminster 78-48 as all five starters finished in double figures.
Marquette, which fell to Eureka in the championship game of the Class 5 District 2 Tournament, had the area’s top player. Senior Taylor Campbell became the school’s alltime leading scorer. She made 50 points in a game against Parkway South in the regular season and finished second in the St. Louis area with an average of 26.5 points per game. Campbell will play next year at Lehigh University.
RACQUETBALL:
Kirkwood competed in the national tournament in Portland, Ore., and had an impressive showing. The Pioneers finished fifth among the 40 teams. Junior J. T. Westcott won the United States National Racquetball championship, while senior Katie Garasky was the runner-up in girls singles.
by Bill Hester