Just got the news: 10 placers, 2 finalists and 4 in for third and fourth....Way To Go Boys!
I guess they are far enough ahead now that even though Carrol has some studs in the finals they can't catch up.
That shows a lot of character for those seniors that lost in the semis and still put it together today for the team title. Good Job!
My alma mater has made me proud!

It shows how tough the state tournament is this year though. I remember when we won 6a in '05 we had 2 finalists and 7 total placers and were able to win.....this year we were holding our breath with 10 placers!

Once again, Congratulations Saint Thomas Aquinas!

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beat me to it

congrats to STA, just wondering if any teams in the past have won the team title w/o having any champs?

I believe that Paola did around 2000.

STA DOES NOT RECRUIT. how many catholic high schools are in the kansas city region??? they have excellent wrestlers year in and year out, not to mention their coaches did an outstanding job. i can guarantee that if you go through your lineup, every one of their wrestlers are catholic. everyone always trys to blame the fact that just because a team is good and wins state, they must recruit. example, i went to bishop carroll. last years state championship team here is a list of the varsity wrestlers and what MIDDLE SCHOOL THEY ATTENDED: Kellers- St. Francis of Assisi, Isaac Johnston- St. Francis of Assisi, BJ Axemen St. Elizabeth Anne Seton, Kyle Detmer- St. Francis of Assisi, Tom McDonald- St. Jude, Mitch Arnold- St. Francis of Assisi, Tyler Rosenhamer- St. Francis of Assisi, David Loos- Mayberry (Member of the Resurrection Church), Thomas Ronck- St. Elizabeth Anne Seton, Ben Meyer- St. Elizabeth Anne Seton, Jake Cole- St. Elizabeth Anne Seton, Nick Heincker- St. Francis of Assisi, Brendon Cody- St. Jude. ALL CATHOLIC!!!!

tom mcdonald

congrats to sta, the catholic schools representing

I don't know if they do recruit, but both Markey's....Olathe north as freshman. The thought being if you have a kid that is showing great potential and wish them to continue to develope. You can "choose" to send your kid to one of the best programs in eastern kansas, catholic or not, conveniently, without regard to school boundry lines. That being said, until there is parochial school state tournament, this is what you get. Congrats to STA and all the fine athletes who attend.

The recruiting thing is totally bogus… When you got a hot line to the Pope you know good things are going to happen! They proved them selves this weekend. Congratulations 5A State Champs!

Not to mention Milstead was at a different school his freshman year... was 34-6 as a freshman won 2 matches at state tourney, just for some trivia, his second lost at state his freshman year, wrestling 125, was to Judd Schroder,Andale who got second at 160 this year.

anyone in the area know they recruit. Just like rockhurst. they talk with parents and get what they want. It's a fact and dont let anyone try to hide it. That is just the way it is and will always be. Look at basketball across the nation. Where do all the great players come from? Same schools. Interesting?
Aquinas seems to get at these Olathe kids in 9th grade as they are not in high school yet in that district. Markey brothers are an example. One other they talked with at the Johnson COunty classic a few years back was Almauger who chose to stay at his home school instead of going to Aquinas. He could have been their champ this year.

Just the way it is and others have to live with it.

by the way millstead was taken away from Ward and "transfered" to Aquinas.

Congrats to all these KIDS, no matter what their parents and coaches do behind closed doors. Good luck in the future.

I guess I don't understand, but I see things differently. When I see individuals and teams succeed at any level I respect the hard work and dedication put in to that success, Not to mention the great parent support and great coaching, rather than belittle the accomplishments to make myself feel better.

Vikes, you do know that those basketball school you are talking of are boarding schools and aren't actual high schools, kind of like Blair Academy? That is totally different.

Like I said before, I am very proud of the TEN state placers for the Saints, and I am very impressed with how hard those kids fought through the back door with four third places and four fifths! That is unheard of...
I've witnessed the hard work so I know the mysterious reasons for the success: Determination and work ethic! That success will carry over into college and whatever other endeavors these boys pursue!

Well it is not fair to public schools when Catholic schools can bring in great athletes from all over the state. I went to a parochial school until I was in 6th grade and TMP came and visited my school in Great Bend. I know Catholic school provide a better education and I can not blame parents for sending their kids there for that reason. But I know that they try to bring in good athletes to their schools. Not taking anything away from them guys, you have to bust your balls to be able to get 10 placers. I just think they should have to have some restrictions on where they get their kids.

CONGRATULATIONS STA
You deserve the 5 A Title to come through the back door ,
never giving up. This is a great example of team pride and
dedication . As a BC fan my hat is off to STA.

yes the academies are the same thing. Families "adopt" these athletes from rough backgrounds and put them in the schools. Happens to be those families have very close ties financially to the athletic programs at those schools (sometimes the coaches)

I also have not said anything negative about the kids. They are not better because they went to Aquinas, they are better because they worked hard. The whole point of how they all are on the same team is what is questionable.

Also, wrestling alum may be correct about the great bend area, but the three big public districts (Shawnee Mission, Olathe and Blue Valley)area are all better academic institutions than Aquinas. Aquinas offers the religious side that is not allowed in public education. So saying they went there for academics is not an argument.

Anyway, this post was originally to say congrats to the kids for their individual accomplishments, but once again they should have won because they were given an advantage the most other schools were not.

I see what vikes is talking about and I’ve heard of the recruiting thing also with STA. I don’t like it because it make for an uneven playing field, but don’t take away from the STA kids. I’m positive they have worked hard for what they have accomplished.

We have brought these woes upon ourselves because we have placed so much emphasis on sports and winning. It is not enough for a kid to compete and just enjoy sports anymore. Many parents are filled will delusions of grandeur that their kids are going to be division one athletes and with that undue pressure is placed upon coaches to produce unrealistic results or lose their job. If I was put in this position as a coach and I had the opportunity to use recruiting options I would probably consider it. I’m not saying that STA does this I’m just addressing the possibility of this situation.

Until KSHSAA steps in and follows through with guidelines against recruiting, which I wish they would, we just have to deal with it. Probably the best option would be to make a private school classification and let it fund it’s own state tournament, but we all know that KSHSAA doesn’t possess the wisdom of the world as they might have you believe.

Congratulations STA Wrestlers on your championship.

Congratulation to STA on an outstanding performance at the State tournament. Always enjoy competing against STA and it is great to see an East Kansas School win the title.

Also, hats of to Bishop Carroll. Tough program. I know a couple of Lansing kids that will be hitting the weight room hard this summer after running into the BC boys.

See you all in freestyle.

Mike Flynn
Spartan Wrestling

While there is no question the Catholic schools are allowed to operate under a different set of rules as far as who gets in and where they come from to attend their particular schools, I agree with those who have stated before in this thread that the kids should not be villified for taking advantage of their opportunities, working hard and becoming champions. People can be mad that STA won a team title if they want to be mad about it, but that doesn't change the fact that each of those individual wrestlers earned their way into the state tournament, and those who medaled earned their medals by wrestling good and working hard. Especially those who came through the back side. It was an impressive all-around performance by those guys, and they deserve to be commended for it.
Congratulations to STA for your great season and strong showing at the state tournament. And congratulations to all of the wrestlers from all of the schools at state. It was an exciting tournament to watch, no matter which school was being represented. Well done boys!

To say that only private schools recruit is malarky. I know for a fact so do the public schools.This has gone on for years and always has . Wichita South had a waitng list during the 80's under Steve Eck. It still goes on today. Wichita NW has done it also for football. So it does go on.

In 2004: Manhatten, my alma matter KC Turner, and Scott City all won state titles without any individual champions.

Wow - you seem to know an awful lot about Aquinas from recruiting to being a lesser academic institution than the local public schools! Do you have stats to back up your statement? I don't claim that Aquinas is better than public schools but it is certainly EQUAL! The religious aspect is a bonus for which my family, and I'm sure many others, sacrifice to pay for.

I also want to say that the Bishop Carroll coaches and wrestlers were class acts last night - making it a point to shake hands with all of our wrestlers after the team trophies were handed out.