Jackson's Peiffer earns fifth-place finish at 215

~ Justin Miller finished sixth at 152 pounds for the Indians.

COLUMBIA -- Jackson junior wrestler Blake Peiffer could afford to think a little about next year after capturing the fifth-place match at the MSHSAA wrestling championships.

Justin Miller had to be consoled with thinking about how far he had come since last year.

Miller, one of two Jackson seniors in the state meet, settled for a sixth-place finish in the Class 4 152-pound division after losing a pair of decisions Saturday at Mizzou Arena. It was his second career appearance at state -- he made it to Columbia as a freshman -- and marked a 12-month journey from surgery to repair a hole in his heart.

"I'm real happy with how I did," Miller said. "It's all I wanted was to be able to place. I was pretty certain I would place, but only because I worked for it so much."

A bloody Justin Miller struggled during his 14-2 loss to R.J. McCravy Saturday, February 16, 2008, during the MSHSAA State Championships at the Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Mo. (Kit Doyle)

Peiffer, one of the five Jackson state qualifiers eligible to return next year, was the top junior in the 215-pound bracket, offering hope that he might able to stand on top of the podium next year.

"I wanted to win, and then I wanted to place in the top four, but having the most wins in the bracket and being the only junior to place feels pretty good," Peiffer said. "I just ran into some really good wrestlers on the way."

Peiffer lost a 6-4 decision to Oak Park's Kelton Kono in the quarterfinals and -- after posting two wrestleback wins -- then lost by pin in 1 minute, 19 seconds to St. Joseph Central's Ben Pister, who finished fourth.

He pinned Raymore-Peculiar's Kris Shuey in 1:29 in the fifth-place match.

"After I lost to Kono, I had to just shake it off and I knew I had to keep my head straight to place," Peiffer said.

Jackson coach Steve Wachter watched as Justin Miller wrestled R.J. McCravy during Saturday's state meet.

His wrestleback wins Friday included a 6-1 decision and a major decision. He concluded the weekend with five wins and two losses to bring his overall record to 50-6, which led the team and all Class 4 215-pounders in victories.

"It was a great finish for Justin and Blake," Jackson coach Steve Wachter said. "I'm really proud of both of them.

"It was a tough weekend for our team. This is just such a competitive tournament."

Jackson had no other wins in compiling 21 points for 17th place. But other than Miller and senior Jamie Schumacher, the other qualifiers -- Peiffer, freshman Levi Rayburn (103), junior Doug Froemsdorf (125), freshman Michael Riney (171) and junior Justin Darnell (189) -- are eligible to return.

"We had four freshmen starting," Peiffer said. "We were able to get two of them up here, and for Riney to get to state in that bracket, that's something to be proud of."

Jackson's Justin Miller, left, and Fort Zumwalt's R.J. McCravy started their match in the 152-pound class Saturday, February 16, 2008, during the MSHSAA State Championships at the Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Mo. (Kit Doyle)

Jackson's last team trophy for a top-four finish came in 2001, which could serve as a goal next year.

"It will be tough" to contend, Peiffer said, "but I think we can bring another big load of wrestlers up here next year."

"This was a great experience for our younger wrestlers," Wachter said. "It gives them an idea what you have to do to be a good wrestler here. We have a shot to bring many guys up here, but we just have to keep elevating our game."

Peiffer, who was the leading tackler and an all-stater for Jackson's state semifinalist football team and now heads into track season to compete in the shot put and discus, also may be able to elevate his placement next year.

"He can, but it will be another year and there's going to be a lot of other guys who will want to win it, too," Wachter said. "He can, and he has the ability. He'll have to work hard."