Meisner runs the Dutch as Wray captures 1A football championship

PUEBLO – With a name like Meisner, Wray’s standout running back was destined to feel right at home in Dutch Clark Stadium.

Lee Meisner once guided the Pueblo East Eagles to a Class 3A state title and the Dutch was home field, as it is for all Pueblo city schools. Lee is the son-in-law of former CSU-Pueblo athletic director Dan DeRose, the man who had a big hand in resurrecting the football program at CSUP.

Meisners succeed in Pueblo, even if there is no relation.

But make no mistake, Sam Meisner brought family with him. He broke for a 31-yard run to setup his cousin’s first touchdown run of the day. Casey Midcap ran for a 33-yard score on Wray’s second offensive play of the game. And that triggered an avalanche as the Eagles beat Forge Christian 48-21 to capture the 1A state title. It’s the first championship for Wray since winning the 3A title back in 1993.

Although the Eagles (13-0 overall) led 6-0 after the first quarter, Meisner put on a show in the second as he rushed for 183 yards and three touchdowns help his team build a 28-7 lead.

“My mindset was that this is my last game,” Meisner said. “It’s my last game that I’ll ever play as a senior and just leave it all out on the field. That was my mentality and I did pretty well with it. But I can’t take all the credit for it. I have o-linemen blocking down field for me and I have the easy job.”

First cousins and teammates since kindergarten, Midcap and Meisner accounted for all seven of Wray’s scores. Midcap ran for two and threw one touchdown pass to Austin Collins. He also scored on a pick-6 in the fourth quarter.

Meisner scored all three of his touchdowns in that third quarter burst. This duo has been the heartbeat behind Wray’s championship ambitions all year.

“I would add Tavery [Chappell], No 55,” Wray coach Levi Kramer said. “He was an absolute beat today. When you have your three leaders that are your hardest workers, that makes life easy on a head coach.”

Wray fell short of last year’s 1A title game in a semifinal loss to Strasburg, a team that moved up to 2A this season. It was a gut-wrenching overtime loss that in a lot of ways planted the seeds for the championship celebration that took place on the turf at Dutch Clark.

“The way last year ended was tough,” Midcap said. “We thought we had it, we thought we had a good play call and we just came up short. We only lost two seniors last year and we’ve been teaching the rest of these guys hard since I was a freshman.”

The hard work paid off. Meisner finished the day with 278 rushing yards and three scores and recovered a fumble on defense. Midcap rushed for 94 yards and two touchdowns, threw for a touchdown and scored on the pick-6.

But this game was far from a two or three-man effort. It took a full staff, a full roster and a full community to secure the first state title in 31 years.

“Half the town of Wray is here,” Meisner said. “It just shows how special our community is. Our small town; it truly is a blessing.”

And it’s apparently tradition. A Meisner wins at the Dutch.