Ben Vessa
@vessaben.bsky.social
Storyteller and photographer at metrosportsstl.com. Missouri Lacrosse ‘Man of the Year’ (2023). Fantasy Football champion (2024). 3rd grade basketball coach with slightly above .500 record (2026).
GBB: Jackson remained undefeated after passing one of its toughest tests of the season against Francis Howell. metrosportsstl.com/2026/01/30/j...
Jackson makes winning plays down stretch to outlast Francis Howell for Lindbergh Invitational championship
SAPPINGTON – The undefeated Jackson girls basketball team needed a test after plowing through the first half of their season with an average margin of victory of 40 points. Francis Howell obliged. In ...
metrosportsstl.com
February 1, 2026 at 7:26 PM
GBB: Jackson remained undefeated after passing one of its toughest tests of the season against Francis Howell. metrosportsstl.com/2026/01/30/j...
BBB: MICDS clamps down on defense, earns impressive win over Vianney in battle of Class 5 behemoths metrosportsstl.com/2026/01/29/m...
MICDS clamps down on defense, earns impressive win over Vianney in battle of Class 5 behemoths
LADUE – With a labyrinth of staggered screens and bevy of backdoor cuts, the Vianney motion offense has produced headaches for opposing defenses this season. So, prior to the matchup with the Griffins...
metrosportsstl.com
January 29, 2026 at 7:28 PM
BBB: MICDS clamps down on defense, earns impressive win over Vianney in battle of Class 5 behemoths metrosportsstl.com/2026/01/29/m...
BBB: Duke drops career-high 32, including buzzer-beating layup, as Vianney outlasts Clayton in thrilling Rotating 8 title game metrosportsstl.com/2026/01/17/d...
Duke drops career-high 32, including buzzer-beating layup, as Vianney outlasts Clayton in thrilling Rotating 8 title game
KIRKWOOD – It’s called “jumping the spin.” It is a defensive concept drilled during Vianney basketball practices that forces a dribbler to make a spin move while a second defender swoops in from behin...
metrosportsstl.com
January 17, 2026 at 7:40 PM
BBB: Duke drops career-high 32, including buzzer-beating layup, as Vianney outlasts Clayton in thrilling Rotating 8 title game metrosportsstl.com/2026/01/17/d...
BBB: Brandon Clemens and the MICDS basketball team ignored the ghosts of Christmas tournaments past to win the Don Maurer Invitational metrosportsstl.com/2026/01/05/c...
Clemens scores season-high 28 points, leads MICDS to victory over CBC to claim Don Maurer Holiday Invitational title
MICDS senior Brandon Clemens remembered the ghosts of Christmas tournaments past – a championship game loss, the wrong end of a buzzer-beater, a narrow semifinal defeat. “We had our chances and we cam...
metrosportsstl.com
January 5, 2026 at 11:19 PM
BBB: Brandon Clemens and the MICDS basketball team ignored the ghosts of Christmas tournaments past to win the Don Maurer Invitational metrosportsstl.com/2026/01/05/c...
BBB: Another great event at the annual Midwest Showdown Shootout metrosportsstl.com/2025/12/22/h...
Hawkins scores career-high 25, helps SLUH outlast Mater Dei at Midwest Showdown Shootout
KIRKWOOD – Breakaway dunks often result in a massive boost of energy, but for the SLUH basketball team, a two-handed slam by junior John Hawkins in the closing seconds Saturday resulted in a massive e...
metrosportsstl.com
December 26, 2025 at 4:45 AM
BBB: Another great event at the annual Midwest Showdown Shootout metrosportsstl.com/2025/12/22/h...
BBB: Lincoln Swan reflected on his mistake, stayed positive and then seized his opportunity. metrosportsstl.com/2025/12/24/s...
Swan, O'Haire return to comfort zone, power Francis Howell to victory over Maplewood-RH in Don Maurer Tourney opener
Francis Howell senior Lincoln Swan sat in the locker room with tears in his eyes. A first team, All-District performer as a junior, Swan played his first game of the season Tuesday after serving a sus...
metrosportsstl.com
December 24, 2025 at 8:35 PM
BBB: Lincoln Swan reflected on his mistake, stayed positive and then seized his opportunity. metrosportsstl.com/2025/12/24/s...
BBB: When life gave them Ayden Lemons, clutch shots were often made. (Warning: story may contain zesty, refreshing puns)
metrosportsstl.com/2025/12/11/l...
metrosportsstl.com/2025/12/11/l...
Lemons' career night helps Marquette squeeze past Westminster for PB&T tourney title
TOWN AND COUNTRY – The scouting report is fairly straightforward when facing the Marquette boys basketball team. Brody Owen shoots the lights out from the perimeter. Alex Komorech averages a double-do...
metrosportsstl.com
December 12, 2025 at 12:34 AM
BBB: When life gave them Ayden Lemons, clutch shots were often made. (Warning: story may contain zesty, refreshing puns)
metrosportsstl.com/2025/12/11/l...
metrosportsstl.com/2025/12/11/l...
FB: Class 3 championship: metrosportsstl.com/2025/12/05/l...
Lift for Life ends historic season with narrow loss to Seneca in Class 3 state title game
The Seneca football team did not expect it to happen any other way. After two state championship losses, an injury-riddled year and a last-second defeat in the final game of the regular season, the In...
metrosportsstl.com
December 6, 2025 at 3:17 AM
FB: Class 3 championship: metrosportsstl.com/2025/12/05/l...
BSOC: Hayden Graddy was ready for his moment metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/26/c...
Class 2: Graddy saves PK in relief, helps Springfield Catholic outlast Principia for state title
FENTON – Freshman goalkeeper Hayden Graddy ran onto the field like it was common operating procedure. Early in the second half of the Class 2 state championship game, Springfield Catholic starting goa...
metrosportsstl.com
November 27, 2025 at 6:51 PM
BSOC: Hayden Graddy was ready for his moment metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/26/c...
BSOC: Class 3 championship: metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/24/c...
Class 4: Niles converts controversial penalty kick, propels SLUH over Rockhurst for repeat state title
FENTON – Connor Niles had never scored a goal in a high school game as he stood over the most important penalty kick of the St. Louis University High season. Senior captain Henry Sanders, the usual pe...
metrosportsstl.com
November 26, 2025 at 12:59 AM
BSOC: Class 3 championship: metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/24/c...
BSOC: Class 3 championship: metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/25/c...
Class 3: Van Horn survives early red card, follows 'joga bonito' motto to defeat Fort Zumwalt East for first state title
FENTON – The Van Horn soccer team has several players who can put the ball in the net, but before the Falcons could become a championship team, those potent scorers had to learn to share the glory. “I...
metrosportsstl.com
November 26, 2025 at 12:58 AM
BSOC: Class 3 championship: metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/25/c...
BSOC: High drama in the state semifinals metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/21/t...
Temple scores OT winner to propel Veritas Christian over Metro, into state title game; Principia, Zumwalt East, SLUH win in semis
FENTON – Veritas Christian senior Ashton Temple is not a fan of overtime. “I hate it. There’s so much pressure,” he said. Temple certainly enjoyed a playoff run in which the Eagles won every game by f...
metrosportsstl.com
November 22, 2025 at 3:35 AM
BSOC: High drama in the state semifinals metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/21/t...
BSOC: Fort Zumwalt West goalkeeper Cody Baden went from stopper to scorer to send the Jaguars to the final four. metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/18/g...
Goalkeeper Baden blasts overtime free kick to send Fort Zumwalt West to program's first state semifinal with win over Francis Howell
WELDON SPRING – Fort Zumwalt goalkeeper Cody Baden does not normally take free kicks when the ball is resting at midfield. But in overtime of the state quarterfinal match against Francis Howell, and w...
metrosportsstl.com
November 19, 2025 at 12:57 AM
BSOC: Fort Zumwalt West goalkeeper Cody Baden went from stopper to scorer to send the Jaguars to the final four. metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/18/g...
FB: FB: A district championship thriller came down to the execution of one play - a play nobody saw coming. metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/17/s...
Sullivan two-point gamble pays off in double overtime victory over Vianney for district title
KIRKWOOD – Sullivan junior Mahlon Foster only completed two passes during the entirety of the game. Senior Chase Blue only caught two passes for the entirety of his career. So, when Sullivan made th...
metrosportsstl.com
November 17, 2025 at 7:01 PM
FB: FB: A district championship thriller came down to the execution of one play - a play nobody saw coming. metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/17/s...
CFB: Lindenwood will try to erase the bitter taste of letting one slip away before facing Eastern Illinois in the home finale this Sat. metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/14/l...
Lindenwood looks to right ship after tidal wave of miscues leads to loss at Western Illinois
There was hope that the Lindenwood special teams unit had turned a corner. During a season scarred by missed field goals, punting mishaps and fumbled returns, the Lions’ special teams unit played bril...
metrosportsstl.com
November 14, 2025 at 10:31 PM
CFB: Lindenwood will try to erase the bitter taste of letting one slip away before facing Eastern Illinois in the home finale this Sat. metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/14/l...
BSOC: Breaking News: The defending state champs are still alive after St. Mary’s is stripped of district title metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/13/d...
Defending Class 1 champ Valley Park to play in state quarterfinal after St. Mary's stripped of district title
The Missouri State High School Activities Association awarded Valley Park the Class 1 District 1 championship after reviewing additional footage from an altercation between district champion St. Mary’...
metrosportsstl.com
November 13, 2025 at 9:12 PM
BSOC: Breaking News: The defending state champs are still alive after St. Mary’s is stripped of district title metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/13/d...
BSOC: Two 22-win, defending state champions met two weeks before they should have. metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/11/i...
In game that could have shined light on high school soccer, SLUH defeats Ladue in darkness for district title
MANCHESTER – On a frigid Monday evening and in the dimness of semi-functioning lights, SLUH defeated Ladue 2-1 to win the Class 4 District 2 championship in a high-level soccer game that should have b...
metrosportsstl.com
November 12, 2025 at 2:44 AM
BSOC: Two 22-win, defending state champions met two weeks before they should have. metrosportsstl.com/2025/11/11/i...