There’s the old expression that one had a red-letter day.

In the case of Belle High School’s Tigers and Lady Tigers, one could say they had a red-letter year.

Beginning with fall sports, Kaci Jones’ Lady Tiger volleyball team captured their first Gasconade Valley Conference (GVC) title in over a decade.

Posting a record of 19-9 which is their best in at least 16 years, Belle’s Lady Tiger volleyball trio of McKenna Loughridge, Lydia Jones and Chloe Jones eared All-GVC and All-District honors.

Reaching the Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) Class 2, District 8 Volleyball Tournament title match at Dixon, Belle lost in three sets to Licking who saw their season end in the quarterfinals against Hermann who went on to place fourth in Class 2.

Entering a co-op agreement with Vienna in softball, Belle Lady Tiger junior Aubrey Rehmert helped the Lady Eagles to a 17-8 record in their first season as members of the Show-Me Central Conference (SMCC).

Competing in Class 3 due to having to combine the enrollments of both Belle and Vienna, the Lady Eagles were seeded third in the MSHSAA Class 3, District 5 Softball Tournament held at Blair Oaks High School.

Falling to second-seed Blair Oaks in the semifinals, Vienna saw the Lady Falcons knock off Fatima 7-2 in the district championship game.

Blair Oaks then wound up placing fourth in Class 3 after a 9-1 loss to Sullivan in the third-place game.

Rehmert earned All-SMCC, All-District and All-Region honors and will look to add All-State recognition during her senior season when she will once again don a Vienna Lady Eagle softball uniform.

After the 2025-26 school, Belle Lady Tiger softball is expected to move to the spring season during the 2026-27 school year giving players that want to play both softball and volleyball during the school year the chance to do so.

Lady Tiger junior golfer Anastyn Lansford capped an impressive season on the links earning All-District honors in addition to a state medal for placing ninth in the MSHSAA Class 1 Girls Golf Tournament held last fall at Crown Pointe Golf Course in Farmington.

BHS Cross Country coached by Samantha Ridenhour had a handful of athletes earn postseason honors at the conference, district and state level.

Earning All-GVC honors following their annual meet which was held in conjunction with the Cuba XC Invitational were Garrett Gehlert, Nolie Finnegan and Tajel McDaniel.

That same trio earned All-District recognition qualifying them for the MSHSAA Cross Country Championships held in Columbia at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course.

Finnegan earned All-State honors placing 19th in the Class 2 girls race.

She transferred to Helias Catholic High School in Jefferson City and will be junior there this fall.

McDaniel graduated this past May and will continue her athletic and academic pursuits as a member of the State Fair Community College (SFCC) Roadrunners track and cross country squads.

BHS soccer had to have boys and girls team up for a co-ed team as there would not have been enough girls to have a team in the spring.

They finished 2-9 while Miles Frey earned All-District 1st Team honors to go along with Brody Reed and Ellie Gray being selected to the All-District 2nd Team.

Malachi Fredendall also earned Honorable Mention All-District honors for the Tigers.

Moving on to the winter months and the hardwood, Belle’s Tiger and Lady Tiger basketball teams both posted seasons with double-digit win totals.

Nearly reaching 20 wins, John Viehland’s Belle Tigers finished with a 19-8 record while also winning a GVC title.

Four Tigers were named to the All-GVC including Glayden Woodruff, Hank Stratman, Gehlert and Hank Willis.

Gehlert and Stratman were also named to the Class 3, District 8 All-District Team from the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association (MBCA).

Falling to Fatima in the district semifinals, Belle saw the Comets fall in the district championship game against Steelville’s Cardinals.

Nathan Lansford’s Lady Tiger basketball team finished 11-15 while reaching the championship game of the MSHSAA Class 3, District 3 Tournament held at Bourbon High School.

Falling to Steelville’s Lady Cardinals, Belle saw their GVC rivals end their season in the Class 3 quarterfinals following a loss to Portageville.

Anastyn Lansford was named the Player of the Year in both the GVC and Class 3, District 3 Tournament.

Saige Garner and Victoria Busch were also named to the All-GVC team while Busch and Aubrey Rehmert were also selected to the MBCA Class 3, District 3 All-District Team.

On the links, track and baseball field, Belle’s Tigers and Lady Tigers added GVC titles in baseball and boys golf.

Finishing with an even record of 12-12, Bryce Gehlert’s baseball Tigers reached the championship game of the MSHSAA Class 3, District 8 Baseball Tournament held at Tiger Field before falling to the eventual state champion Fatima Comets.

Earning All-GVC honors was Hank Stratman, Garrett Gehlert, Luke Rohrer and Gage Terrill.

Stratman was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the GVC.

Those same four Tigers also earned All-District honors with Stratman also being voted the district MVP.

Members of the Missouri High School Baseball Coaches Association (MHSBCA) also selected Stratman to their Class 3 All-State Team as a first-team catcher.

Coached by Jacob Walton, BHS Track’s Tigers and Lady Tigers had numerous athletes earn All-GVC honors during their annual meet in early May.

Those included Aubrey Rehmert, Malachi Fredendall, David Skaggs, Connor Weigel, Braxton Ahart, Ethan Bailey, Skylar Perkins, Timothy Schmid, Cloie Schneider, Kenadie Bailey, Ellie Gray, Tajel McDaniel and Zoe Camden.

Earning All-District honors with top-four finishes in their events were Barrett Finnegan, Rehmert, McDaniel, Frey, Skaggs and Fredendall.

Rehmert capped a solid junior season with a state championship in the Class 2 Girls Javelin after winning conference, district and sectional titles in the event.

Leading Belle to a GVC title in boys basketball, Viehland duplicated the feat on the golf course coaching the Tigers to another conference title.

Tigers earning All-GVC honors on the links included Avery Craigmiles, Keagan Kinsey, Kelhen Struemph and Gage Vandegriffe.

Craigmiles, Struemph and Vandegriffe all earned All-District honors allowing them to become state qualifiers.