From the sidelines
As the post-season nears it's fitting to talk about some of the best performances from Marion High School winter sports athletes.
The following is a top-five list, but keep in mind there were others that could have just as easily been mentioned, but these stand out.
5. Adam Regnier starts wrestling season 7-0.
Although the junior is not undefeated anymore, he still sports a 26-8 record in the 130-pound weight class.
Regnier, who had around a .500 record as a freshman with raw talent, has finally broken out and shown the talent of a state-qualifying wrestler.
4. Derek Riggs makes short work of his opponents.
OK, so nearly every wrestler could argue he had a match this year that was better than someone else.
But faster? Probably not.
The junior Riggs wrestled all of 56 seconds Thursday at the Marion Double Dual but still had a 2-0 record.
He had a 35-second pin in his first match against Lyons, and then a 21-second effort against a Haven opponent.
That's a good way to boost your seed at regionals without even breaking a sweat.
The 215-pound wrestler is 28-9 on the season.
3. Heerey's free-throw streak.
There have been many free-throw streaks in high school, college, and the NBA nearing or even surpassing 100 in-a-row.
But MHS sophomore Kayley Heerey has had the best Warrior streak since I started at the Record four years ago after nailing 13-of-13 in the Hillsboro Classic back in January, and then following that up with a 10-11 night against Hillsboro a week later.
That was 23-24 throughout four games. But to show how tough free-throw shooting can be at times, she missed two-of-three in her next game against Nickerson.
2. Gordon's breakout game.
There have been great games from MHS players such has Calvin Jeffrey's 26 points against Garden Plain, and even Gordon's 14-point, 13-rebound performance in the Hillsboro Trojan Classic.
But Gordon out-did himself Jan. 29 against Nickerson with an 18-point, eight-rebound, five-block game in a 50-45 victory.
The performance was especially impressive because without it, the Warriors surely would have lost, not to mention the 6'6" junior made some of his blocks without even leaving his feet.
1. The double-defeat of Hillsboro
It may not have been on the same night, but both the girls' and boys' basketball teams defeated Hillsboro this season for the first time in, well, no one really knows.
Neither school can provide an exact year when it last happened, but the boys' defeat of the Trojans last year was the first in the past 11, although they have only been playing annually since 2004.
They were victorious again Jan. 17 in the Trojan Classic, and the Warrior girls' defeated the Trojans Jan. 25 on the road.
It was the first time since the two schools were joined together in the Mid-Central Activities Association in 2004 that MHS defeated HHS.
If both Marion teams can do it next season, it shouldn't be hard for anyone to remember when it last happened.
