CAMAS — The 4A Greater St. Helens League district wrestling finals started with a 106-pound freshman leaving his sweat and blood on the mat to carry on a family tradition.
They ended with a 285-pound senior scoring four points in 15 seconds to win the day’s most intense match.
In between, there were plenty of memorable moments Saturday at Camas High School.
But the best match at districts might have been the last. In the 285-pound final, Kevin Kruse of Skyview and Whitey Sosene of Heritage went back and forth.
Kruse took a 7-6 lead with 47 seconds left, only for Sosense to score two points shortly after.
With wrestlers and fans lining the mat, Kruse ended with a flurry. He scored a two-point takedown with 15 seconds left, then defied Sosene’s final move and scored a second takedown just before the buzzer for a 11-8 win.
Close matches between Kruse and Sosene have become common. Sosene narrowly beat Kruse at the Clark County championships last month.
“Me and my partner Jackson McKinney worked our butts off to get my conditioning up,” Kruse said. “It feels incredible. All the work I’ve put in, it finally pays off when you get a move down.”
Kruse’s triumph came roughly one hour after Battle Ground freshman Daniel Joner opened the finals with a 5-3 win over Union’s Brandon Esperto at 106 pounds.
Joner wrestled most of the match with a bandage wrapped around his head.
“I got busted in the nose a little bit,” he said. “I just had to keep my cool, stay calm and do what I do best.”
Joner is carrying on a family tradition. His uncle, Chris, was a state qualifier for Battle Ground last year. His aunt, Sierra, earned her fourth Clark County championship last month.
Union carried on a legacy of its own, winning its eighth district title in nine years after Camas won last year.
Tommy Strassenberg captured his fourth district title, winning at 152 pounds by injury default over Battle Ground’s Izaiah Duran.
District, regionals, state. It’s a familiar routine for Strassenburg. But he believes this year could be special on a statewide level for Union.
“The sky is the limit for us,” he said. “I have all the confidence in the world for our teammates. It has been a band of brothers for four years.”
Now a senior, Strassenberg said he’s taking time to enjoy moments he might have previously overlooked.
“I’m just enjoying coming out to practice, getting the music cranked up,” he said. “It’s fun.”
Brothers J.J. Talavera and Noah Talavera captured district titles for Union.
J.J., a senior, won his second straight by beating teammate Danny Snediker 14-6 at 145 pounds. He has lost just once this season.
“My top game is solid and I’m quicker than I’ve ever been,” he said.
Noah, a 126-pound sophomore, won his first district title with a 6-1 win over Tanner Craig of Camas.
Ethan Rotondo and Aaron Avery also won for Union. Rotondo, a returning state champion who normally wrestles at 113 pounds, went up to 120 to face teammate Vitaliy Manolov, who he beat 2-0.
4A Greater St. Helens League District Championships
At Camas High School
Team scores — 1, Union 377.5, 2, Camas 324; 3, Skyview 179; Battle Ground 155, Heritage 115.
Individual placers (Top five to regionals).
106 — First place: Daniel Joner (BG) def. Brandon Esperto (U) 5-3; Third place: Sanry Nguyen (H) def. Chad Doney (H) 9-4; Fifth place: Sam McCornick (C) p. Jake Adkinson (C) 1:05.
113 — First place: Aaron Avery (U) p. Ryan Ball (C) 3:54; Third place: Spencer Chinn (U) p. Cole Scluter (C) 1:58; Fifth place: Bye.
120 — First place: Ethan Rotondo (U) def. Vitaly Manolov (U) 2-0; Third place: Jack Latimer (C) p. Joshua Alonso (S) 1:27, Fifth place: Jacob Marta (C).
126 — First place: Noah Talavera (U) def. Tanner Craig (C) 6-1; Third place: Michael Strickland (C) def. Quentin Krogstad (U) 6-0, Fifth place: Draven Burton (H) p. Cesar Nava Magana (S) 0:22.
132 — First place: Rylan Thompson (C) p. Karter Leifson (C) 1:01; Third place: Justin Durrett (U) p. Cole Rice (S) 1:31, Fifth place: Daxten Monahan (H) p. Michael Rogers (U) 4:24.
138 — First place: Alex Newberry (H) def. Gideon Malychewski (C) 6-1; Third place: Quentin Ada,s (C) def. Zach Phillips (S) 12-2; Fifth place: Luis Arellano (BG) def. Isaac Salon (U) 13-11, OT.
145 — First place: JJ Talavera (U) def. Danny Snediker (U) 14-6; Third place: Quinn Martin (S) p. Jordan Deckker (C) 2:28; Fifth place: Chris Johnson (S) def. Spencer Inserra (BG) 8-4.
152 — First place: Tommy Strassenberg (U) def. Izaiah Duran (BG) by injury default, 2:34; Third place: Six Buck (U) def. Noah Rank (BG) 13-2, Fifth place: Dustin Hubbard (C) p. Kyle Bare (H) 3:50.
160 — First place: James Rogers (BG) p. Isaac Duncan (C) 0:38; Third place: Kyle Brosius (U) def. Noah Hadfield (U) 5-1, Fifth place: Nick Oien (S) p. Jack Preston (C) 2:52.
170 — First place: Jackson Sayler (S) def. Colby Stoller (C) 12-2; Third place: Joshua Joo (U) def. Alex Gonzales (U) 14-1, Fifth place: Jaden Harkey (S) p. Michael Witthauer 1:19.
182 — First place: Jackson McKinney (S) def. Sam Malychewski (C) 5-3; Third place: Jordan Sullivan (BG) p. Joseph Vallejo (U) 3:12; Fifth place: Travis Mayfield (C).
195 — First place: Curtis Stradley (BG) p. Tanner Howington (C) 5:31; Third place: Luke Pipkin (C) def. Brandon Thomas (U) 7-5, Fifth place: Brian Lloyd (S) p. Quentin Wolford (H) 1:16.
220 — First place: Dylan Ingram (C) p. Demetru Salagor (U) 1:47; Third place: Marvin Barber (U) p. Anthony Choi (C) 0:40; Fifth place: Austin Steward (BG) p. Anias Delano (S) 0:48.
285 — First place: Kevin Kruse (S) def. Whitey Sosene (H) 11-8; Third place: Nic Curl (U) def. Mason Lux (U) 1-0, Fifth place: Mohamed Ali (S) p. Shane Chandler (H) 0:38.
