By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
KANSAS CITY - Former Northwest Missouri State men's basketball coach Ben McCollum and the 1979 Plattsburg football team, a Class 2A state champion, were among the latest teams and individuals to be enshrined into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.
The 2024 class was enshrined during a ceremony at Union Station in Kansas City Sunday. Twelve individuals and four teams were honored in all.
McCollum was back in Missouri for the ceremony after accepting the men's basketball head coaching job at Drake University in his home state of Iowa.
Having won 12 MIAA regular season titles and four national championships during his 15 years in Maryville, the 42-year-old McCollum is humbled to be Hall of Fame material as his career continues to grow.
"I think it's just a testament to the people and the (Northwest program)," McCollum said. "My family, my assistants and all of that. Just all of the work they've put into the success and how we've invested in people and how we've made them hopefully better human beings."
One of the four teams honored Sunday was the 1979 Plattsburg football team, which went undefeated and won the Class 2A state championship.
Linebacker and tight end Richard Wade was there to speak on behalf of the team. He says that team was exactly that - a group that knew how to work well and succeed together.
"That team was a true team," Wade said. "It didn't have standout superstars. It taught us then - if you work together, you can accomplish great things. And, most of the team has gone on to be very, very successful."
The '79 Plattsburg team was head coached by Jim Freeman. The year they won state was the first year of the Show Me Bowl being played in St. Louis.
The Missouri Sports Hall of Fame also recognized nine Diamond 9 honorees. The Diamond 9 award recognizes people who "exhibited outstanding talent or made significant contributions at the high school, college or professional levels of baseball or softball."
Greg Kastner exhibited just that in his lengthy and fruitful baseball career.
A St. Joseph native, Kastner played three seasons at Missouri Western State University, where he was an honorable mention All-American pitcher, as well as a first team NAIA All-District and First Team NAIA all-area honoree.
At one point, he set single-season records at Western for for fewest hits and fewest runs allowed in a season.
Kastner signed with the Atlanta Braves organization, but an arm injury cut that dream short and set his career on a new path into coaching.
Kastner served as head baseball coach and athletic director at Bishop LeBlond High School. He coached the Golden Eagles from 1987-2016, going 386-240 (.626) in that time. His teams won 12 district titles, including seven in a row.
"Honors for me are because of the parents and the players who were a part of everything my past 40 years I spent coaching," Kastner said. "If I didn't have the players who bought into the system, they're the biggest part of this. I'm just a result of what they were able to do. This is just kind of the icing on the cake for me, now that I've retired."
On top of that, Kastner was LeBlond's A.D. for 39 years and he's been a public address announcer for over 40 years at multiple sporting events all over northwest Missouri.
Kastner says it's his P.A. work with the St. Joseph Mustangs, area high schools and other venues that give him joy since his retirement.
"It keeps me involved and young," he said. "Now that my wife (Mindy) passed away, it's really more to be involved. I do Benton, Central, Lafayette. Whoever calls, I'm there. I stay involved in all sports. Chain gangs on Friday nights at LeBlond, driving the bus."
"As long as I can stay involved and try to help kids, that gives me my greatest pleasure. I've had my day in the sun. I'd love to see them have theirs."
2024 Missouri Sports Hall of Fame Class inductees
Tom Watson – Missouri Sports Legend
Eric Hosmer – Kansas City Royals
Casey Wiegmann – Kansas City Chiefs
Betty Lennox – Fort Osage High School/Louisiana Tech/WNBA
Ben McCollum – Northwest Missouri State men’s basketball coach
The late Dale Eshelbrenner – Tennis coach
Pembroke Hill School Boys Tennis Program
Mike DeArmond – Sportswriter
Dr. Vincent Key – Sports Medicine
Phil Dorman – Platte County High School wrestling coach
Platte County High School Wrestling Era 1999-2010
Dr. Ashley Wysong – Nevada High School & University of Missouri track standout
1979 Plattsburg High School State Championship Football Team
1977-1980 Hickman Mills High School Girls Basketball Era
Fred Flook – William Jewell College baseball coach
Porter Ellett – The Art Hains Inspiration Award
Diamond 9 honorees
Anthony Caenepeel – Willard High School/Northwest Missouri State University
Tim Dougherty – O’Hara High School/Rockhurst University
Greg Kastner – Christian Brothers College High School/Missouri Western State University
Ali Jo Rogers Locher – Medicine Lodge (Kan.) High School/University of Central Missouri
Sarah Baldwin Miller – Chillicothe High School/University of Evansville/Northwest Missouri State University
Jeff Niemeier – Oak Park High School/University of Kansas
Haley Pypes – Platte County High School/United States Military Academy/Missouri Southern
Amanda Self – Blue Springs High School/Emporia State University
Jeremy Strack – Gardner (Kan.) High School/Fort Scott Community College/William Jewell College
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