Toca, throwers set table for Cats

Before any sprinter or distance runner stepped foot on the track at William Chrisman High School, the site of the Suburban Big Seven Track and Field Championship, Blue Springs High School had totaled 41 points – thanks to a shot put and discus crew that was led by Gus Toca and Jordan Chrisman.
Toca, a junior, won the discus (168 feet, 5 inches) and was third in the shot (50-10) to win the Rusty Hodge Award, which is given to the top thrower at each conference championship. The award is named after the late Blue Springs and Blue Springs South track coach who died following a bout with cancer.
“I never met Coach Hodge,” Toca said, “but I know he was a great man, and this is a great honor.”
While Toca won the discus, Chrisman won the shot put (53-8). Ethan Daniel and Toca placed second and third to give the Wildcats a huge boost toward their first conference championship in 10 years.
“Gus and Jordan are beasts,” said senior distance runner Philip Hickman, who won the 1,600 meters. “I’m a senior and this conference championship means so much to me and the other seniors. The way they’re throwing the shot and discus, they could help the team win a lot of conference championships.”
Chrisman, a sophomore, enjoyed the moment following his victory.
“I had a p.r. (personal record) by 2 feet, so I’m feeling pretty good,” Jordan said. “Today’s my mom’s birthday, so this win is for Melody Chrisman. I won the junior varsity shot last year, but this one is more special. I told her I was going to do something special for her.”
And by doing something special for his mom, he and Toca did something special for their teammates and coaches.
“We’ve been down a couple of years in the shot and discus, and then Gus and Jordan and the other guys come along and we get well real quick,” weight coach Jared Barge said.
“We got 1-2-3 in the shot and 1-5-6 in the discus and score 41 points. That’s 41 points we would have never scored last year, so we’re all pretty excited.”
When asked about the newfound success in the weight events, Barge said, “Success breeds success. These guys challenge each other every day. But they really like each other and when one of the guys offer some advice, they listen. Gus could be a coach right now.”
When asked about a coaching career, the junior strongman said, “We push each other. If I notice something a guy is doing wrong, I’ll tell him. And the guys listen. I know I listen when someone offers me some advice. I don’t know if I want to coach, but it might be interesting.”
n Keyen Porter’s performance in the 110 hurdles was simply spectacular.
“You ought to just run by yourself,” teammate Sarah Wakeman joked. “You know you’re going to win.”
Porter and Wakeman each won the Golden Shoe Award, which is given to the athlete who scores the most points for his or her team. Porter scored 28 and Wakeman 26.
Some fans were wondering why Blue Springs’ Carlos Anderson wasn’t in the mix as he won the 100 and 200 and anchored two winning relay teams. Relay wins only count as 2.5 points, so Anderson totaled 25.
“I thought Carlos would win it for sure,” Porter said.
Wakeman has won the award two years in a row.