Athletes and coaches affected by repurposing of Lafayette High School adjusting to new schools and teams

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV) - Earlier this year we told you about Lafayette High School now becoming a middle school, and this created new school zones across the city of St. Joseph, meaning new students and teachers attending schools like Central, Benton, and Bishop LeBlond.

On the sports side of things, how have the new athletes and coaches been adjusting to their different environments?

In football, the Central Indians have been making good use of former Lafayette wide receiver Evan Parksel as he collected two game-winning touchdowns for them in the month of September. On Benton, the Cardinals have athletes like former Lafayette player Kamden Buckley and Dominick Hapner coming over from Central, and both have quickly found out the meaning of Southside pride.

"At first it was a little, a little iffy, but I've really got to know the coaches and my teammates," said Buckley. "I love it here, it's great. The Southside mentality is a real thing. I learned that real quick."

"We've just been fired up, man. We've been working really hard out here; we've been doing great things out here," said Hapner. "I've seen a lot of new faces. "Obviously I come from Central, so I'm new here. I've really been excited working with these guys and we've been putting in a lot of work at these practices. I'm sure to continue working."

The Central volleyball team has four seniors that came over from Lafayette.

Emery Omon, Jacie Davis, Remy Foulk and Kenzley Hamm all switched from green to blue.

For Omon, who just recently committed to Lindenwood University track and field, she's embracing her final high school year with a fresh start.

"It's been really good for me. I like Central. It's a nice school, and I have a lot more opportunities here than I did at Lafayette," said Omon. "It's been way easier than I thought it would be team-wise. They're all really nice girls, and we all get along really well."

On the softball side, Bishop LeBlond has sophomore Maci Dulcan coming over from Lafayette.

Dulcan wore her Fighting Irish visor with her LeBlond uniform during the City Jamboree back in August to pay tribute to her former team.

"It's been really good so far. All the girls are so welcoming. Our team is doing really good this year. They're still adjusting to me coming in, but so far so good, great sportsmanship and everything," said Dulcan.

It wasn't just players having to transfer with all these changes. Some coaches did as well.

An example is Jeff Leake, who switched from being the head coach at Lafayette softball to now being the head coach at Central.

"The main thing that I'm trying to do this year is just to create a positive, enjoyable environment. I can't say enough good things about how the girls have gotten along with each other and the Central girls welcoming the Lafayette girls and vice versa," said Leake. "So that's my main focus is to have that good environment where we can teach the game."

Leake had a handful of softball players transfer over with him from Lafayette to Central.

Examples are athletes like senior Shae Davison and junior October Johnson. Both have bonded with their new teammates and found leading roles with the Indians.

Johnson even had a walk-off hit over Benton in the first game of the season.

"It's a lot different carrying the team in blue now, but it felt amazing. We've always wanted to go after it. We did it in green, but we did it in blue. I really had to be there for my team and I kept going. My mindset was a yes, yes, yes. There was no nos about it, and it felt really good," said Johnson on her walk-off hit. "It's been so amazing. They were so welcoming; everyone was a little nervous at first, but they've been so welcoming, and now we're part of the blue, and nothing's gonna stop us. We always have our green together. We're always together, but it's been an amazing team."

"Getting to know each other has been a little bit of a hump, but everyone's trying new positions, combining two teams who have been used to playing one position," said Davison. "So everyone's just been open and ready to play. The people at Central are really great. Everyone's doing their best and it's made it easier."