Junior ranks as county best of all-time

By RYAN RICHTER

Staff writer

Posting multiple state titles and records, both in boys and girls track, Mitchell County had been labeled by Kansas-Sports website as the throwing event’s mecca of Kansas.

With state record-setters and former as well as current state champions in Casey Seyfert and Sydney Johnson, Beloit has been a force to be reckoned with in Kansas high school track.

However, the county suddenly has company, with Marion County posting some solid throwers as well with the recent crowning as Class 2A state shot put champion of soon-to-be Hillsboro senior Wes Shaw at the Kansas state high school track meet this weekend in Wichita.

Shaw’s throw of 60-feet 11¾ inches set a Class 2A state meet record as well as being the state’s top throw in all six classes.

His closest competition came from South Gray’s Class 1A champion Gilbert Peters, whose best was nearly 3 feet shorter at 58’2”.

Shaw also had quite a haul in discus.

After topping Marion’s Tyler Palic, in regionals, Shaw was just 4’5” short of Palic’s record-setting throw of 182’6” in their final clash.

After taking third in shot put a year ago as a sophomore, Shaw climbed into the state’s driver seat early in the year for all classes, rearranging Hillsboro’s discus and shot put record book in the process.

Both Trojan discus and shot put records are now comfortably in Shaw’s possession, and will likely be for quite some time.

Shaw’s record-setting throw last week was the state’s best ever in classes 1-3A, with Shaw beating former Kansas State and National Football League player Monty Beisel by seven inches.

Sixty feet has been impossible for three of the county’s former state champions as well as some of Hillsboro’s state placers.

Marion’s back-to-back state champion in 1968 and 69, Gary Melcher fell well short, as did the 1972 champion, Lou Wegerer.

Even Hesston’s dynamic 1990 and 1991 duo of back-to-back state champions Chris Tozier and Jason Stansbury couldn’t get 60 feet.

Former Tabor All-American rush end and strongman Chad Duerksen could only manage third place in 1999, tumbling to former Pittsburg State quarterback Neal Philpott and Horton’s champion, Luke Lott.

Standing 6-foot-3 inches and weighing 250 pounds, the hulking Shaw is imposing, but it’s not only shot put and discus where he excels.

Virtually impossible to outmuscle in the paint, Shaw, along with fellow junior Darian Ratzlaff and graduated senior Elias Werth, formed the Trojans’ Big Three on the basketball court.

The Trojans just missed out making a return to Manhattan’s Class 2A state tournament, falling to Inman, but the trio still earned all-state mention.

Hillsboro struggled on the football field for several years, but Shaw is arguably one of the Trojans’ most reliable unsung heroes, playing on the offensive line and linebacker.

Shaw figures to be one of the Trojans’ top forces in what could be brighter days ahead on the field this year with a drop down to Class 1A.

Shaw also stands a good chance of climbing into the state’s driver seat for discus as well with Palic graduated.