2023 Season Wrap-Up
1st places at Nationals - 11 National Champions for the Blue Knights!
Zeke Hagen, 12U: 1600m, 2400m
Anya Stiles, 16U: Discus (2nd consecutive year)
Hannah Gresham ,18U: Pentathlon
Faith Brown, 14U: 400m
Aaron Mudge, 16U: 100m
Maddy Haynes, 12U: High Jump (2nd consecutive year) - Shot Put
Rebekah Riggs, 12U: 100m
16U Girls 4 x 200m - Rose Nichols, Sophia Ngyuen, Grace Knoerr, Tabby Bryant
*New Meet Record*: 14U Boys - 4 x 800m - Reuben Anderson, Zeke Hagen, Clayton Muratori, and Nathan Schellmann - This is the first time a Blue Knight team or individual has held a National Meet Record!
5 podium finishers in the Pentathlon at Nationals
14U Women - Faith Brown (3rd)
16U Men - Jacob Anderson (tied for 5th)
16U Women - Tabby Bryant (2nd)
18U Men - Brandon Bryant (4th place)
18U Women - Hannah Gresham (1st)
Success in the Sprint Events with Team Records
High School Men set three traditional sprint events team records (100m, 200m, and 400m).
High School Women broke team records in two of the sprint events.
Aaron Mudge set the 100m and 200m team records.
Brandon Bryant set the 400m team record.
Faith Brown set the 200m and 400m team record.
In a track meet, there are usually three traditional sprint relays held (4 x100, 4 x 200, and 4 x 400). Three relays are held for women and three for men, for a total of 6 relays. Blue Knights relay teams broke FOUR of those records (usually multiple times) this season, as follows:
- 4 x 400 women’s team broke the record three different times. Tabby Bryant, Cami Plymale, Cali Plymale, Sophia Ngyuen, and Faith Brown were members on these teams at various meets.
- 4 x 100 men’s team broke the team record on two occasions. Brody Seth, Brandon Ward, Michael Leine, Brandon Bryant, Sam Schark, and Roman Gaugh were members of this team.
- 4 x 200 men’s team broke the team record four times. Aaron Mudge, Michael Brandon Bryant, Noah Kusmanoff, Roman Gaugh, and Michael Moore participated at different meets on these record-setting teams.
- 4 x 400 men’s team broke the team record three times. Sam Schark, Michael Leine, Brody Seth, and Brandon Bryant were members of this relay.
Other High School Team Records set this year
Anya Stiles - Discus
Tabby Bryant – 800m
Sam Schark - Triple Jump
Faith Brown - Long Jump
Cali Plymale - Triple Jump
Hannah Gresham – Javelin
Overview of the season from Head Coach Mark Forbes
“I will remember the season for the improvement we made in sprinting and the relays as a team. Coach Bryant really did a good job of causing growth with some talented kids, and athletes started to realize what happens when they work at getting better. Significant team contributions were made by freshmen and sophomores. We were a young team and had some outstanding contributions, including those mentioned previously and also James Wamsley and Reuben Anderson.”
April 25: Louisiana Invitational at Louisiana High School – Louisiana MO
When the future athletes and fans of the Blue Knights reflect on the 2023 season, one common theme will be central: the most successful year thus far in team history for sprinters and relays. This theme was also the highlight of the Louisiana High School Invitational held on Tuesday, April 25th.
In a record setting night, Aaron Mudge and Brandon Bryant combined to set team records in all three individual sprint events and then partnered with Brody Seth and Michael Leine to set the 4 x 200 record. The BK sprinters have had five meets and have broken this event record 4 different times this year. Mudge became the first Blue Knight under 12 seconds in the 100 (11.57) and also the first under 23.25 seconds in the 200 (23.14). Bryant continued to lower the 400 record he set earlier this year by clocking a 54.41. Mudge and Bryant medaled in each of these events.
Not to be outdone by the guys, the duo of Tabby Bryant and Faith Brown also teamed up to set individual and a team relay records. Bryant broke one of the longest held team records by winning the 800 convincingly with a mark of 2:31:53. Brown became the first Blue Knight on the women’s side to go under 28.5 seconds in the 200 (28.45). In the final event, Bryant and Brown teamed with Cami Plymale and Cali Plymale to break the 4 x 400 relay mark for the 3rd time this year with an impressive 4:25:96. How impressive that these records were reached by one sophomore and three freshmen! Anya Stiles demonstrated her event versatility by taking 3rd in the discus and 1600. Captain Sadie Brandt added to her many BK distance accomplishments by earning a 2nd place in the 1600.
The Blue Knight men had their best team performance of the season finishing 2nd out of 9 teams. Sam Schark finished 2nd and 3rd in the long and triple jump respectively. Brody Seth added to his medal collection from relays by a 3rd place finish in the long jump. James Wamsley doubled up by finishing 2nd in both the 800 and 1600. Reuben Anderson added a 3rd place finish in the 3200 as he continues his stellar freshman year.
The Blue Knights, both high school and middle school teams, will finish their seasons on May 10th and 11th at the Homeschool Nationals meet held in Bolivar, Missouri.
April 19: NIX Relays at Washington High School – Washington MO
The NIX Relays hosted the Blue Knights track team as well as 13 other large school teams. The NIX meet has several unique events rarely held locally, even in the different format presented by a relay meet. The Knights medaled in three of these unique events.
The women’s hurdles relay team (Captain Hannah Gresham, Faith Brown, with sophomores Sophia Ngyuen and Emily Majors) cleared the hurdles cleanly to medal. The men’s team (Nathan Schellman, Jeremiah Szymanski, Nathaniel Barton, and Reuben Anderson) equaled their teammates with a 4th place finish to earn a medal.
Another unique event was the 4 x 1600 meter relay. Due to the length of the event, these relays were held before all other running races. The women’s team of Tabby Bryant, Anya Stiles, Majors, and Captain Sadie Brandt captured 5th place for a medal finish. This meet was the first time Blue Knights athletes participated in these events.
Another relay which the Knights have participated in, but usually only once a year, is the distance medley relay (1200, 800, 400, 1600). The women’s DM relay team of Stiles, Majors, Bryant, and Brandt gave the Blue Knights their team high 3rd place finish for NIX.
Freshman Cali Plymale led the Knights with the highest individual finish with a 4th place in the triple jump and set a new Blue Knights record. Senior Sam Schark also set a new team record in the triple jump by leaping 38’ 11” for a 7th place finish. This was the first time Plymale and Schark competed in the triple jump event! Gresham, who has broken the record for women’s javelin several times this season, did it again during this meet.
April 14: St. Dominic Track Invitational at St. Dominic High School – O’Fallon MO
The Blue Knights High School Track team attended the St. Dominic Track Invitational with eight other teams. The warm temperatures in the 80s and varsity level competition brought out the best in our team, in particular the sprinters. There were twenty-nine new PRs on the team at that meet, along with eight new BK Team Records!
For the women’s team, junior Hannah Gresham and sophomore Tabby Bryant both placed 3rd in the 100m hurdles and 800m, respectively. Sophomore Anya Stiles placed 2nd in discus with a new BK record. Blue Knights records were set by Cali Plymale in triple jump, (Captain) Gresham in javelin, and the women’s 4x400m relay. The record setting team consisted of Bryant, Plymale, Sophia Nguyen, and Faith Brown running anchor.
The men’s team also joined in on setting BK records. Junior Brandon Bryant broke the 400m BK event record with a time of 55.02. Bryant then helped out the 4 x 100 and 4 x 400 to set BK team records on this historic Friday evening. All BK records for the three traditional sprint relays fell as the 4x100 relay (Brody Seth, Brandon Ward, Michael Leine, and Bryant), 4x200 relay (Noah Kusmanoff, Michael Moore, Leine, and Sam Schark), and the 4x400 relay (Schark, Leine, Seth, and Bryant) showed teamwork to achieve the task.
April 6: DeSoto Middle School - DeSoto, MO
The middle school Blue Knights track team had an excellent first meet in DeSoto, MO with fierce competition, especially in mid to long distance events. Schools from the surrounding areas of DeSoto are known for their distance programs and gave our athletes some great competition to bring out the best in our distance runners.
Four new BK records were made at this meet in the 4x800 (girls and boys) and the 1600 (girls and boys). The 4x800 teams consisted of Lily Campbell, Kiera Stiles, Lindsey Skogen, and Rose Nicholls for the girls and Ruugan Lily, Clay Muratori, Aristen Malone, and Zeke Hagen for the boys. Not only did these two relay teams place a new BK record, but they also medaled, placing 2nd place in a meet with strong distance programs with teams like Festus and Potosi placing first, respectively.
Lynn Criswell broke a new record in the 1600m with a fourth place medal finish, beating her previous record of 6:05 with a new record of 6:00 - also noted on a MileSplit as a top 50 performance in MO for the middle school mile for girls. Hagen, new 7th grader to the team, broke the previous record held by David Riggs of 5:34 with a new record of 5:33.
Nicholls and Emery Plymale, new 8th graders to the team, both medaled placing first and fourth, respectively in the 400M. Our 4x400 teams also medaled, placing 3rd and 4th respectively for girls and boys.
Returning athletes from previous years also set new PRs at this meet, including Criswell, Selah Higgins, Christian Adkisson, Logan Clipper, Grant Criswell, Noah Jacobs, Remy Miller, Clay Muratori, Josiah Satterfield and Josh Ward.
The next middle school meet will take place at Warrenton High School on Saturday, April 15th.
April 1: John Burroughs High School - St. Louis, MO
The Blue Knights high school track team and their families survived a cold and windy track meet with the Skippy Keefer Relays at John Burroughs High School on April 1st. The gusty winds of nearly 35 mph, paired with the cold at 40° F, caused the cancellation of 2 events and hindered event performances. The Skippy Keefer is one of the biggest and most prestigious meets the Knights compete in this year. Still, it was really cold! Some very large St. Louis and Chicago High School teams were present and competing. The Knights were able to brave the elements to produce some performances worth noting.
On the men’s side, Senior Sam Schark turned in the best individual performance with a 5th place Long Jump with a jump of 17’8.5”. In the same event, Brody Seth finished 8th. The 4 x 200 relay team of Brandon Bryant, Michael Moore, Michael Leine, and Schark, also fought the weather to set the team event record. This is the 2nd time the team record in this event has fallen this year.
The Women’s Blue Knights team had a good showing with several top ten finishes. Anya Stiles led the way with a 2nd place finish in the Discus. Captain Hannah Gresham managed a 4th place finish in the 300m and 5th place in the 100m Hurdle events. Freshman Faith Brown continued her previous successes with a 3rd place in the Long Jump and 6th in the 100m Hurdles. Captain Sadie Brandt had a courageous 9th place finish in the 3200. Emily Majors also finished 9th in the 300m Hurdles. Many of these women were also instrumental in helping the Knights in the relays.
The best showing of any relay for the Blue Knights on the day took place in the Women’s 4 x 400. The team of Tabby Bryant, Gresham, Sophia Nguyen, and Brown finished 3rd in a very difficult field of relay teams. The distance medley team of Bryant, Stiles, Majors, and Brandt finished 5th. Congrats to team player Tabby Bryant who ran in 4 different relays!
The Blue Knights will compete again at the St. Dominic Invitational on Friday, April 14th.
March 28: Winfield High School - Winfield, MO
After a month of practice, the Blue Knights Track Team started their 2023 season at the Winfield High School Early Invite. The meet can be summarized with two words: relays and underclassmen.
The Knights graduated 20 Seniors from a successful 2022 team. While those Knight alum won’t be forgotten, several newcomers to the team had strong showings at Winfield. Blue Knights displayed strong teamwork in the relay portion of the meet. On the women’s side, the 4 x 400 and 4 x 800 relay teams each took 1st place. The 4 x 400 team consisted of Tabby Bryant, Cami Plymale, Sophia Nguyen, and Faith Brown with a time of 4:37. The 4 x 800 team of Sadie Brandt, Anya Stiles, Emily Majors, and Bryant ran an 11:55. Both relay times rank these particular teams the 2nd fastest in Blue Knights history. Also of note, 6 of the 7 ladies on these relays are freshmen or sophomores!
On the men’s side, the 4 x 400 team of Sam Schark, Michael Leine, Brody Seth, and Brandon Bryant finished 2nd at Winfield with a time of 3:54.68. The 4 x 200 relay team of Noah Kusmanoff, Michael Moore, Roman Gaugh, and Aaron Mudge finished 3rd at the meet, but managed to set a Blue Knights Team Record in the 4 by 2 with a time of 1:45:32.
Since times tend to get faster as the year goes on, the fans of the Blue Knights might be seeing other relay records fall before the end of the season!
Sophomores Mudge and James Wamsley, and Freshmen Reuben Anderson, Brown and Plymale all proved they were ready for Varsity competition as well. All 5 athletes are new to the Blue Knights High School team this year.
Mudge finished 5th in the 100 meter dash with a time of 12.2 and that mark set a Blue Knights team record for the event. He then anchored the 4 x 200 relay team. Walmsley finished 5th in the 1600 and anchored the Men’s 4 x 800. Another stellar Sophomore, although not new to the team, Bryant contributed to the winning relay teams and finished 4th in the 800 meter run.
Brown and Anderson led the Blue Knights in scoring. Brown earned 16.5 total points with 3rd place finishes in the Long Jump and the 400 meter dash. She also anchored the winning 4 x 400 meter relay team and earned points in the 100 Hurdles. Anderson earned the team 10 points by finishing 2nd in the 3200 and a 7th place finish in the 1600. Plymale earned the Blue Knights points in the 200 and 400.
With promising underclassmen contributing already, fans of the 2023 Blue Knights have many good moments for future meets this year.