The Jefferson City Jays are ready to take that final step.
"It's been a fun year, we've had dual success and won some tournaments and improved all season," Jays wrestling coach Phil Cagle said as Jefferson City prepares for the Class 4 championships starting today at Mizzou Arena. "We've climbed the stairs and kept moving forward."
The Jays will have seven wrestlers at the state tournament.
"Seven is a really good number with as young a team as we have," Cagle said.
The contingent is led by Garrett Butel, its lone senior, who has climbed the stairs in his time at Jefferson City.
"He is a Jay," Cagle said. "As a freshman, we didn't even take him to the district tournament because he was 10-30 and wasn't ready for it.
"Now he's 30-10 and a district champion. That shows if you stick with it and work hard and do the things you're asked to do, good things wind up happening."
At 113 pounds, Butel will square off with Mitchell Huber (24-10, soph.) of Fort Zumwalt West in the first round. Butel qualified for state at 106 last year.
"Garrett kept working hard to get better and better," Cagle said. "The key is allowing yourself to be coached and that's what has made Garrett a state qualifier."
The Jays had three second-place finishers at the district tournament - juniors Will Kuster and Sam Rackers, along with freshman Will Berendzen.
Kuster (34-6) will face Anthony Chellew (34-12, jr.) of Seckman in the first round at 145. Kuster, a state qualifier at 138 last year, is ranked No. 4 by MissouriWrestling.com.
"Will has been to state before, he knows what to expect," Cagle said.
Rackers (34-9), a state qualifier at 132 as a freshman, will meet sixth-ranked Braden Vaugler (40-5, sr.) from Jackson in his opening match at 152.
It's a rematch from the Thrasher Tournament last month in which Rackers lost an overtime decision.
"I think that match has stuck with Sam," Cagle said.
Berendzen (29-5) will meet Vince Restivo (28-6, jr.) of Liberty North tonight.
Berendzen started the season at 152 on the JV, but moved to 160 on the varsity because of an injury to Gabe Zimmerman.
"We talk all the time about overachieving and that's what we did," Cagle said. "We're just a bunch of average guys who need to overachieve to succeed and that's what Will did."
Brandon Backues of the Jays finished third in the district at 220. He is a three-time state qualifier at the weight.
Backues (35-5) will meet Austin Wegener (38-2, sr.) from Lafayette: Wildwood in the first round. Backues is ranked third at his weight, while Wegener is No. 5.
"If Brandon can win his first match, I think he has a great shot at getting all the way to the finals," Cagle said. "It's just a matter of taking care of business in that first match."
Two Jays - Clayton Hurley at 132 and Brant Aulber at 182 - advanced to state by taking fourth in the district tournament.
Hurley (27-14), a freshman, will face Andrew Godier (32-6, sr.) from Francis Howell Central in the opening round. Godier is honorable mention in the state rankings.
Aulber (19-19), a sophomore who moved up from the JV early in the season, will square off with second-ranked Colton Hawks (33-2, jr.) in the first round.
"Things started clicking at the end of the season for both of them," Cagle said.
With six of the state qualifiers returning next year, this could be a valuable learning experience for the Jays. But the Jays don't want this chance to slip away.
"You never know, it may be tough for some of them to get into the varsity lineup next year," Cagle said. "This is an opportunity for them and I think they're ready to take advantage of it."
Tonight's first round is the first of those opportunities.
"There can be kids that are just happy to be at state," Cagle said. "This first round, it's important to be mentally tough to take advantage of any mistake by your opponent and not make any mistake your opponent can take advantage of."
The Jays believe they have a chance for a good team result.
"We'd like to finish in the top 10, it's doable if the kids reach their goals," Cagle said. "I have a lot of confidence in our kids."
Action will begin at 5:15 p.m. today. The Class 4 tournament will resume at 1:30 p.m. Friday. On Saturday, the third- and fifth-place matches will begin around noon, with the championship round slated for a 4 p.m. start.