Camas wrestlers earn three county championships

Six Camas High School wrestlers made history at the Clark County Championships Saturday, at Skyview High School.

Vince Huber became the first Papermaker in six years to win a county championship medal. The CHS senior gained a 7-6 edge on Union’s Cody Gromes with 22 seconds left in the final round of the 182-pound championship match. Gromes attempted to escape twice, by Huber refused to let go until the referee blew the whistle.

“I kept my eye on the clock and knew I had to ride him out somehow,” Huber said. “I’m proud of the win. He’s a tough kid. It just feels great to be able to represent Camas as a Clark County champion.”

Taryn Lommasson and Erin Tully not only became the first county girls champions from Camas, they also helped the Papermakers place in their first girls tournament in school history. Jenna Rae Wilson pinned Washougal’s Emily Alder-Storm for third place at 106 pounds. Katie Lindstrom finished fourth for the Papermakers at 124 pounds and Shauna Ahern scored some points for Camas in the 100-pound bracket. The combined effort of those five Papermakers netted a third-place team finish.

“A lot of these girls are new to wrestling, and they’re just pretty excited to be here,” Lommasson said. “Hopefully, this is just the beginning for us. I want to see more girls from Camas getting into wrestling and helping the program get bigger and better.”

Lommasson earned an 18-1 technical fall over Battle Ground’s Lourdes Arellano in the 112-pound championship match. She also pinned Ridgefield’s Cailee Martin in the semifinals and Union’s Lisa Weisshaar in the first round.

“I’ve never been a county champion before. This is just awesome,” Lommasson said. “I’ve been working hard for three years and it’s finally paying off.”

Tully pinned Ridgefield’s Baylee Wright in 5 minutes, 17 seconds to capture the 118-pound championship. The topsy-turvy contest had the crowd on edge of it’s seats. Tully gained advantage in the final round and wrote Wright off.

“I was nervous when she got me in those first two full nelsons. Once I had her down, I knew what to do,” Tully said. “She was very good and she wouldn’t turn over easy. I’m glad I was able to finish it.”

Tully is happy to be back in action after breaking her arm last season. The junior also beat La Center’s Katlyn Bigley 4-1 in the semifinals and pinned Fort Vancouver’s Katelyn Alexander in the first round.

After a first-round bye, Huber pinned Columbia River’s Jeremiah Patrick in the quarterfinals and Skyview’s Ian Horricks in the semifinals. Gromes pushed Huber to the edge, but the Papermaker chopped down the Union Titan.

“I’m really proud to get the win for my team and for the City of Camas,” Huber said. “All the towns and schools know each other. We’re all wrestling in our backyard. This raises the competitiveness of everyone. Now they know what to expect and that should make the matches more exciting the next time.”

Camas earned eighth place in the boys tournament. Austin Miller also reached the championship round, but lost to Union’s Junior Godinho 8-4.

“Austin wrestled his heart out in the finals and that really inspired me,” Huber said. “He’s just a great teammate. I’m glad he stuck with me all the way to the end.”

Andrew Duffy, Bryant Elliott and Wes Gilge each won their medal matches for fifth place. Gavin Grable, Dakota Safford and Noah Shannon settled for sixth place.

The Papermakers host Battle Ground Wednesday, before wrestling in the Columbia Gorge tournament Saturday at Stevenson.