Missouri boys winter sports notebook: Wrestlers ranked among elite in nation

Here are five takeaways from the past week of the Missouri-side boys high school winter sports scene:

1. The most fruitful year of Smithville junior Jake Boyd’s wrestling career just added another accolade.

For the first time in his high school career, Boyd is ranked among the country’s best high school wrestlers. He is No. 20 in 195-pound weight class in the latest InterMat Wrestle rankings.

A year after placing third at the Missouri Class 2 state tournament, Boyd is 46-1 this season, with his only loss against The Baylor School (Tenn.) senior Ryan Parker, who is also nationally-ranked.

Three more area wrestlers kept their spots in the rankings. Platte County senior Matthew Schmitt (126 pounds) is No. 8; Platte County senior Ethan Karsten (145) is No. 14; and Park Hill senior Canten Marriott is No. 16 in the 170-pound class.

2. Pembroke Hill junior guard Curtis Lewis isn’t much of an imposing figure. In fact, he’s often the smallest player on the basketball court.

But he knows how to score nonetheless.

Lewis reached the 1,000-point milestone Friday, when he scored 19 points in a 75-64 home loss to St. Joseph Benton. Lewis entered the game with 985 career points.

A day later, he scored 16 points in Pembroke Hill’s 58-56 win against Bishop Seabury.

Speaking of which....

3. Liberty North senior Michael Hughes hit the same milestone on the same night.

During a 58-36 home victory against William Chrisman, Hughes made a second-quarter free throw as the crowd chanted “one more point.” It responded with a standing ovation.

Hughes finished the game with 19 points. He is averaging 18.1 points and 14.3 rebounds per game this season.

4. The prolific wrestling season of Raytown senior Braden Best continued yet another weekend.

Best won the Blue Springs South wrestling tournament Saturday, edging South senior Trey Storey 9-7 in the 182-pound championship bout.

The six-victory weekend improved Best’s season record to 43-0, and many of the wins came in the most dominant of fashion. Best pinned his first five opponents in the tournament — all in the first period — before the two-point win against Storey, who is 44-3.

Best placed fourth in the Missouri Class 4 170-pound bracket last February. Storey was second at 182 pounds.

5. For the third time in the past four years, Smithville won the Cameron Tournament, this time with a 58-56 victory against Chillicothe in the championship Saturday. The Warriors also defeated Excelsior Springs and Maryville.

Campbell Lakatos scored 20 points in the championship game, helping the Warriors overcome a four-point halftime deficit. Riley Gesling added 15.

This story was originally published February 3, 2016 at 6:00 PM with the headline "Missouri boys winter sports notebook: Wrestlers ranked among elite in nation."