On the sidelines: National College Signing Day

The best part about being on the sidelines is watching the teams and the athletes you cover accomplish some pretty amazing things.

You get to ask them questions, tap into their emitions and share their stories.

From the time they arrive on varsity as freshmen, sophomores and juniors, to their final go around as seniors, you grow to respect these athletes for all the hard work they put into their sport for their teammates, coaches, school, family, friends and community.

As eight Camas High School seniors sat at the table in front of the packed North Commons area on campus for National College Signing Day Wednesday, Athletic Director Terry Cavender chose the perfect statement to describe these Papermakers.

“We live vicariously through you,” he said.

As a sports reporter who lives on the sidelines, I couldn’t have said it better than Cavender did. I love attending the football games on Friday nights, the soccer showdowns on Tuesdays and Thursdays and the baseball and softball battles that aren’t rained out.

But today is not about me. It’s about the athletes who work so hard for the opportunity to earn a college scholarship. And today, the people of Camas have plenty of reasons to celebrate.

Soccer players Olivia Lovell signed with Oregon State University, Emily Ainsworth signed with Central Washington University and Michael Koceja signed with Bellevue College.

Camas baseball catcher Austin Barr signed with Stanford University. Camas softball catcher Mikaela Searight signed with Siena College.

Football players Jonathan Warner signed with Penn State University, John Payne signed with Eastern Oregon University and Kamari Brown signed with Pima Community College.

Read what these athletes had to say about National College Signing Day in the Tuesday, Feb. 7, print edition of the Post-Record. Also check out our online photo gallery from the big day today.

See you on the sidelines.