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MERIDIAN BOYS WRESTLING
1st Round
Defeated Rocky Mountain Girls Golf (73% to 27%)
Head Coach
Brad Muri, 13th Year
Key Athletes
Jeremiah Gonzalez, 11, 113 lbs.
Carson Gooley, 12, 195 lbs.
Jason Mara, 12, 152 lbs.
Matthew Papa, 12, 126 lbs.
Hudson Rogers, 12, 182 lbs.
Meridian has won four consecutive Class 5A team championships, a run that has coincided with the emergence of an Idaho all-time great in Jason Mara. The Warriors finished with 273.5 points at the state tournament in Pocatello this year, 67 points ahead of second place Post Falls.
Mara capped his career by joining the four-time state champion club, while Gonzalez, Rogers and Gooley picked up their second career individual titles.
As a team, Meridian had 14 wrestlers place somewhere among the top six in their weight class, and claimed a state placer in 12 of 15 weight classes overall.
KENDRICK FOOTBALL
1st Round
Defeated Soda Springs Girls Track and Field (55% to 45%)
Head Coach
Zane Hobart, 12th Season
Key Athletes
Brock Boyer, 11, Offensive Line/Defensive Line
Sawyer Hewett, 11, Running Back/Defensive Back
Ty Koepp, 12, Quarterback
Dallas Morgan, 12, Offensive Line/Defensive Line
Hunter Taylor, 12, Wide Receiver/Defensive Back
Kendrick’s large group of seniors just finished a run that included a 37-4 run and three consecutive Class 1A Division II championships. In playoff victories over Dietrich, Hagerman and Camas County this past November, the Tigers outscored their opponents 246-20.
It’s easy to point to the talents of four-year starting quarterback Ty Koepp and his bevy of talented ball-handlers like Sawyer Hewett, Hunter Taylor, Mason Kimberling, Wyatt Fitzmorris, etc. But the true strength of Kendrick’s dominance starts with two-way linemen Dallas Morgan (6-foot-3, 262 pounds) and Brock Boyer (6-foot-2, 220 pounds). Size like that is unheard of in Idaho’s smallest classification.
Next year will provide an interesting challenge, as several starting spots in the lineup will be turned over to newcomers. Kendrick also will be moving up a classification level in 2024. But for now, let’s simply bask in all that the Tigers did in 2023.
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