Simon, Thomas, Proudfit, Camas’ King win titles
Second best was pretty much the only possibility for a Clark County wrestling team Saturday night at the Class 3A Regioin III tournament.
Yelm is just that good.
The Union Titans will take second place, though. Especially after leading the Clark County athletes with five finalists and three champions.
Ricky Simon, Dillon Thomas and Max Proudfit all took home championships for Union, while Brandon King of Camas also stood atop the podium. The four will lead Clark County’s Class 3A athletes to next week’s state tournament as the top seeds from the region.
Two big names are not on the winner’s list: Clint Coulter (189 pounds) of Union and Paul Connell (160) of Columbia River, both ranked first in the state, had tough nights. Coulter lost in the semifinals at 171 pounds, then won two in a row to advance to state as the third-place finisher. Connell, however, suffered a separated shoulder, an injury that ended his season.
But for every heartache in wrestling, there is a championship story, too.
Yelm had eight finalists and won five titles while compiling 246 points. Union had five finalists and finished second with 189½ points.
Ricky Simon was the first Union champ, taking the 140-pound title by pinning Yelm’s Patrick Benson in the third period.
“I just felt stronger. I had confidence. I felt I was more ready,” said Simon, who finished second in this event last year. “I trained harder, and my confidence shot up. That’s what it’s all about. If you train hard enough, you should have it.”
Union wrestling coach John Godinho said his senior leader deserved this title.
“From when we first started, he’s been the heart and soul of this team,” the coach said.
Dillon Thomas could barely catch his breath after topping Camas’ Caleb Malychewski in the 171-pound finals, 3-1.
“Nice. Nice,” he said, before taking another minute.
The two know each other well. Thomas was pinned by Malychewski once this season, then beat him twice more — including a one-point decision — before battling each other again at regionals.
After a scoreless first round, Thomas got an escape, and then a takedown with three seconds left in the second period for a 3-0 lead.
“I was just happy for scoring points on him before the third round, because he goes after it,” Thomas said.
Proudfit ended the night in a flash, pinning Yelm’s Josh Stephens in 45 seconds for the 285-pound title. Not bad for a second-year wrestler, a newbie to the sport who had been sick all week.
“I didn’t know how I’d do today,” Proudfit said. “I hadn’t practiced a lot. I just came out and worked as hard as I could and got me a regional championship. I started wrestling last year, and I’ve improved by leaps and bounds.”
Union advanced nine wrestlers to the state tournament, tops among the county 3A wrestlers.
“You don’t hear too many teams doing that in their third year or their second year, for that matter,” Thomas said, referring to Union’s second-place regional showing last year, as well. “We’ve got good coaches, that’s for sure.”
Union did not have a monopoly on happiness, though.
“I’m on top of the world right now,” Camas’ Brandon King said after winning the 215-pound title. He beat Union’s Bryson Page 11-4 in the finals.
“This year, I felt like it was mine,” King said. “I just had to go out there and take it. It blows my confidence way up. I’m so excited for state.”
Prairie finished fourth in the team standings and advanced six to state. Two brothers, Kyle (135) and Joel Wiley (103), made the finals for the Falcons. Emilio Alcantar of Hudson’s Bay (130) and Scott Schnitzer of Columbia River (152) also made the finals. Tyler Davis (125) also made the finals for the Titans.
Camas qualified four wrestlers to state.
