Farmer named top coach

CHARLESTON -- For Charleston's basketball team, anything less than a state championship is perceived to be a disappointment.

But the reality of the situation is that just making it to the state tournament is truly an honor itself.

Charleston has reached the state tournament four straight times, taking third place twice and second place the last two years.

Charleston's ability to overcome adversity and reach the state tournament with a team full of underclassmen was recognized by the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association as coach Danny Farmer was named the Class 3 Coach of the Year.

This year, Charleston wasn't picked to even make it to state as Doniphan stood in the way in a potential sectional matchup.

But the Bluejays upset Doniphan in a 51-point turnaround from an earlier defeat to the Dons, routed Miller Career Academy in the quarterfinals, and held on to defeat Mount Vernon before falling to a superior Cardinal Ritter team in the state championship game.

The Bluejays, overcame some early-season adversity as starting point guard Shawn Sherrell and starting forward Josh Thompson all missed significant parts of the season with injuries.

The Bluejays also lost a player due to academic problems after the first semester, but Farmer kept his team's head above water.

And for that, Farmer finally got well-deserved credit from his peers.

"I'm really honored that the coaches felt that way," said Farmer. "I think it's a great compliment from the coaches. When you've been at a school with nine state championships and you've been there four times and didn't win it, a lot of people feel, 'well hey, that's not doing anything.' Because we've normally won it all. But just getting that far is really a great accomplishment. I think my peers know what a job it is to do that. And I'm honored by that."