Michael Smith View photos from the KC Metro Classic shot by Mark Lundy.
Mill Valley senior Ethan Kremer had a stellar high school career.
He finished it with another Kansas state championship this season in the 285-pound weight class, the third of his career. He finished with a 23-1 record and will move on to play football at the Colorado School of Mines.
He had one final match against Missouri two-time state medalist Tyson King of Raymore-Peculiar at the 29th annual Metro Classic Tuesday at Avila University. It’s a dual that features some of the best senior wrestlers in the Kansas City area from Missouri and Kansas.
Kremer used a half nelson to turn King and pin him in 2:56 to help Team Kansas earn six team points in the final match. But it wasn’t enough as Team Kansas fell 28-27 to Team Missouri, which now leads the all-time series at 19-10.
Team Missouri’s Chris Bizzle of Park Hill defeated Louisburg’s Alec Younggren 3-1 in the 220-pound match to give Team Missouri a seven-point margin it needed to clinch the dual, thus making it impossible for Kremer to win the dual for his team.
Despite the team loss, the meet was still an enjoyable experience for the Mill Valley senior.
“Even with limited numbers, we still had a great crowd here and everyone was getting into it,”Kremer said. “It was a great environment.
“I wanted to finish the match with a pin. I got on top and was able to finish it.”
Team Kansas got off to a strong start in the dual and held a 6-0 lead thanks to a pair of wins by decision from Bonner Springs’ Trevor Andrew (113) and Olathe North’s Joseph Triscornia (120).
Andrew led 4-3 in the second period and was able to ride out Belton’s Antonio Rizzi in that period and the third to hold on for the one-point victory.
Triscornia got a takedown in the first period and managed to ride out Blue Springs’ Cayden Dotson in the second and third period for a 2-0 victory. Dotson nearly got a reversal in the final seconds but the officials ruled that he didn’t have control.
“It was pretty awesome, this is a really cool event,” Triscornia said. “Going out here and getting a win is what you want to do. I thought I could have wrestled a better match, but a win is a win.
“Throughout my career, I feel like I have done pretty well on top. I was trying to work some turns, but I knew in the third period, my goal was to keep (Dotson) in the mat because I was only up two.
“I am looking into going to Fargo or even Virginia Beach again. I went as a sophomore.”
Seven matches later, Team Missouri surged ahead 25-9, winning six of the seven matches. The only win for Team Kansas came from Saint Thomas Aquinas senior Johnny Akin (145), who earned a 2-1 victory against Kearney’s Garrett Deason.
After that, Team Kansas rattled off three consecutive victories. Mill Valley’s Brodie Scott (182) scored the final three points of his match with Lee’s Summit North’s Aaron Barnhill after a takedown and an escape, winning his match 5-2.
Then Saint Thomas Aquinas’ Jared Simma (182), who was a two-time state champion and two-time runner-up, took an 8-3 lead against Odessa’s Jake Evinger before getting a pin in 3:38 to cut the team score deficit to 25-18.
“I just wanted to push the pace because I knew we needed the bonus points,” Simma said. “He was tired. I went to an ankle pick and underhook. Then I got him in an armbar, turned him over and pinned him.”
Simma finished his season with a 37-0 record and he capped it off with a win at the Metro Classic. He will wrestle for Northern Iowa University in college next winter.
“It was awesome,” Simma said. “I got to put on a show in front of the Missouri and Kansas fans. It was fun and I am ready for the next level.”
Mill Valley’s Caiden Casella finished the three-match winning streak for Team Kansas when he got a takedown in the final 20 seconds to defeat Grain Valley’s Hunter Newsom 4-3, making the score 25-21.
But Bizzle won the next match, ending Team Kansas’ hopes of a victory.
Missouri – 28
Kansas – 27
113 – Trevor Andrew – KS DEC Antonio Rizzi – MO – 3-0 KS
120 – Joe Triscornia – KS DEC Cayden Dotson – MO – 6-0 KS
126 – Korbin Shephard – MO Teched Cade Holtzen – KS – 6-5 KS
132 – Kage Lenger – MO DEC Cruz Lara KS – 8-6 MO
138 – LJ Davenport – MO DEC Kai Allen – KS -11-6 – MO
145 – Johnny Akin – KS DEC Garrett Deason – MO – 11-9 MO
152 – Gavin Gross – MO Teched Byron Kirkwood – KS – 16-9 MO
160 – Bryce Palmer – MO Pinned Bobby Thomas – KS – 22-9 MO
170 – Coleton McElliott – MO DEC Jacob McLain – KS – 25-9 MO
182 – Jared Simma – KS Pinned Jake Evinger – MO – 25-15 MO
182 – Brodie Scott – KS DEC Aaron Barnhill – MO – 25-18 MO
195 – Caiden Casella – KS DEC Hunter Newsome – MO – 25-21 MO
220 – Chris Bizzle – MO DEC Alec Younggren – KS – 28-21 MO
285 – Ethan Kremer – KS Pinned Tyson King – MO – 28-27 MO
