If the trend continues, the Missouri Track and Cross Country Coaches Association (MTCCCA) might want to add a Herculaneum wing to its hall of fame.
In November, Kyle Davis hopes to be standing on the podium at Gans Creek in Columbia with both of the Herculaneum boys and girls cross country teams for the Class 3 state championships.
The Blackcats are frequent visitors to the state stage, collecting trophies and winning championships. Under Davis’s leadership as head coach, both teams finished third in the state in Class 3 in 2025. He led the girls to a state title in 2012 and the boys in 2021. The girls won the Jefferson County Activities Association title on Oct. 17. Both teams are legitimate threats to add to the school’s impressive collection of hardware – 13 state crowns for the boys, 11 for the girls.
Davis will be back on another stage in Columbia on Dec. 11 when he will be inducted into the MTCCCA hall of fame. Davis joins a growing list of Herculaneum coaches that includes Clark Wille (1990), Jim Kasten (2010), and his son, Ryun Kasten (2021). Jim guided the Herky girls to state titles in 2001 and 2006. Ryun kept the title streak going for the next three years and added nine state championships overall for the boys and girls teams.
“Last year, when I saw my name on the ballot, I was embarrassed,” Davis said. “I thought I’m too young for this. It’s been a humbling and an honor to see my peers reach out. It’s been something I thought would be way later or after a career. Cross country has a camaraderie with it … some of our biggest friendships are against our biggest rivals.”
And they don’t come any bigger in the Herky cross country world than Festus. Although they compete in different classes – the Tigers are in Class 4 – both programs keep a close eye on the other.
Wes Armbruster has led the Festus girls to the last two Class 4 state titles. Armbruster is building a HOF career himself because he’s also the head coach of the Tiger girls track and field team that’s won the last two state meets. If there was any doubt that the running community in Jefferson County supports each other, no matter the name on the uniform, Armbruster trashed it by nominating Davis for the HOF.
“Kyle’s one of the good ones,” Armbruster said. “When I got back into coaching distance runners at Festus, Kyle took a lot of my phone calls. I gave him a hug on Saturday for their performance. Great guy and human being.”
“We’ve made each other better over the years,” Davis said. “The season will end, and we’ll share each other’s training. I might not always be thrilled at Festus’s success, but I am always thrilled when my friends succeed. At the end, when we’re in different races, we’re cheering for each other.”
Armbruster took over as head coach of the Festus boys this year from another county HOFer, Bryant Wright, who won 11 state titles with the boys and two with the girls.
Wright is retired from teaching and coaching. He was on hand for the JCAAs.
“We were always going against each other, but we were also friends, and we still are,” Wright said of Kyle. “We’ve gone fishing together and done a lot of things. It’s a great honor for him, but it’s well deserved. Look at all the things he’s done at Herculaneum. He always seems to be on top when it counts.”
Like the Kastens, Davis was handed down his love for running and coaching it by his father, Steve, who built a hall of fame career (2009) in his 25 years coaching at Potosi. Steve won seven state crowns coaching the Trojan boys cross country team and two more with the boys track and field squad. He has been the head coach of the men and women at Mineral Area College in Park Hills for the last nine years. Steve and his wife, Debbie, live in Potosi.
“His mother and I are very proud of him,” Steve said. “He’s had a successful career, and he’s got some years left to go to do some more things.
“He’s got his own style. He’s an innovator. He cares about people. The kids seem to love him.”
The Kasten legacy lives on through Kate Kasten, Ryun and Amy Kasten’s daughter, who’s a junior at Herky and runs for the Blackcats. Her cousin, Finley Hamtil, is Jim’s granddaughter, and also on the team.
“It started when dad (Jim Kasten) was in high school at Herky and ran for Coach (Bill) Holmes,” Ryun said. “From (Holmes) came my dad, Steve Drinen, Stan Helms. I grew up on their stories and accomplishments of the great things these coaches did and the lives they shaped. That motivated me to follow in those footsteps. And I know the same went for Kyle when he was running in his dad’s footsteps. It’s a culture thing.
“Kyle can relate to kids. As you get older, people say it’s hard to relate to young kids, but he’s found a way year in and year out to find those connections. That makes them want to work hard. Running is not easy. It’s not always fun. To want to do that, a good coach has to foster an environment that makes it enjoyable, and Kyle does a great job of that. Then there’s the science of running and his knowledge of the sport. It’s on a different level.”
Kyle said his success is derived from his father.
“I’m in this sport and position because my dad raised me around it. I fell in love with the sport and have learned so many things from him. You have to use the death grip to pry anything out of him. He’s still building his own legacy, too.”