Ruble leads Seckman to Class 4 runner-up team finish; Lafayette's Hagan, Troy's Smith capture titles

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Seckman High's motto heading into the Missouri Class 4 boys wrestling state tournament was to “take care of business.”

Cole Ruble decided to close up shop early Saturday at Mizzou Arena.

The junior needed just 50 seconds to end his 160-pound state title match with a pin and help Seckman complete the best team finish in program history at the state tournament.

Seckman earned 114 team points to finish second behind Liberty of Kansas City. The second-place plaque is the Jaguars best to go along with a third-place finish in 2012 and three fourth-place finishes (2011, 2015, 2018).

Ruble also was the quarterback on Seckman's football team. He led the area with 2,555 rushing yards and scored 30 touchdowns for the conference champion Jaguars.

He used those football skills to attack Carthage junior Davion King at the outset of the match. Ruble scored two quick takedowns and led 4-1 in the opening 40 seconds.

“My coaches told me to keep my feet moving, move his head and my shots would be there and they were,” Ruble said.

Moments later, Ruble crawled to his left, secured the pin and began his championship celebration.

It was the culmination of a dominant tournament for Ruble (42-5), who earned two pins, a major decision and an 11-6 decision to capture the title.

“He was a man on a mission,” Seckman coach Ryan Moyer said. “He’s one of the most athletic kids I’ve ever coached, and for him, all it took was belief and he ripped through this bracket.”

Seckman had five state placers, and four reached the semifinals.

“This week, whoever was in front of us was our business. We took care of it and came through,” Moyer said.

PERFECT SEASON FOR LAFAYETTE'S HAGAN

Lafayette senior Tommy Hagan completed an undefeated senior season with a 16-5 major decision over Oakville sophomore Ethan Venable.

Hagan became the first Lafayette boys wrestler to win a state championship since Brian Sanguinet won the 130-pound division in Class 4 in 2004.

“I committed everything I had to this season. If I was going to do this, I was going to do it the right way, through hard work, and I did it,” Hagan said.

Hagan and Venable wrestled in the Class 4 District 1 championship match one week earlier, with Hagan earning a second-period pin. In that match, Hagan was disappointed with a first-period performance in which he led 4-1.

There was no disappointment Saturday.

Hagan (46-0) exploded for three takedowns and a near fall to lead Venable 9-2 after one period and led 16-2 midway through the third period before periodically checking the clock in the final moments.

Hagan, who placed second as a junior and third as a sophomore, climbed one more step on the podium as a senior.

“I thought I overachieved as a sophomore, and I didn’t think I could top it, but I found the slightest way to top it every year — third, second, first.”

Hagan, like Ruble, was represented on the Post-Dispatch All-Metro team in football with 130 tackles, 41 tackles for loss and 13 sacks on the Lafayette defensive line.

“It’s all the same. A blast double is a tackle. They’re the most applicable sports for each other,” Hagan said.

TROY'S SMITH WINS TUSSLE AT 170

Troy junior Brett Smith, who gained 954 scrimmage yards and scored 15 touchdowns as a running back for the Class 6 state semifinal Troy football team, used his footwork and strength to capture a hard-fought 2-0 victory against Francis Howell senior Hayden Trezek in the 170-pound title match.

Smith (43-3) had beaten Trezek three times during the season, the closest being a 6-4 sudden victory overtime match at the Gateway Athletic Conference championships. The state title match again was tightly contested.

“I tried to force the issue and get to my shots, but I give props to (Trezek), he wanted it,” Smith said.

After a scoreless first period, Smith would not let Trezek escape from the bottom position through the entirety of the second period. It appeared that a Smith reversal in the third had garnered the necessary points to win the match, but an official failed to stop the clock after signaling a stalling warning.

After a premature celebration and a 12-minute delay, 32 seconds were put back on the clock.

“At first, I thought I won, but when I heard it was a stall, I knew I was going to have to go back out there,” Smith said.

Smith held Trezek down and became the fourth Troy wrestler to win a state title and the third local football standout to stand on the top step of the podium.

“Good wrestlers make good football players — they have determination and a thirst to win,” Smith said.