Growth of girls wrestling shows in Kelso

KELSO — As the final matches wrapped up shortly after 5 p.m. Saturday, nobody would have figured the Kelso Girls Invite was the largest girls wrestling event ever held on the West Coast.

Despite 735 girls from 102 schools competing in the two-day affair, Kelso High, its coaches and volunteers made the process seamless.

By Saturday’s end, they got a chance to reflect on the growth of the sport for girls around the region.

Last year, there were 555 girls competing in the tournament. With Oregon in its second year of girls wrestling as a sanctioned sport, the region is reaping the rewards.

“I think the eliteness of it is just going to grow,” Kelso coach Bobby Freund said. “With Oregon sanctioned, it’s going to give our top girls a look at a different group of girls at the top.”

Washougal senior Vanessa Brooks is one of those who has quickly fallen in love with the sport. Brooks started wrestling this season. She placed fifth at 190 pounds on Saturday, a testament to how far she’s come in just a few short months.

“My best friend, Ashley (Garrison), wrestles and has been trying to get me to do it,” said Brooks, whose Panthers finished 10th as a team Saturday. “I finally said yes.

“When I first started, I wasn’t very good; I was just feeling it out. Now I’m sad I didn’t do it my freshman year, but I’m glad I got the opportunity to do it my senior year.”

West Linn’s Destiny Rodriguez, who won the 145-pound title, is still the lone girl on her wrestling team, but after competing for eight years, she’s starting to see the growth in Oregon.

“A lot of girls are coming out now and pushing themselves,” Rodriguez said. “It’s really cool.”

Thirteen years ago, one year after the sport was sanctioned in Washington, the first Kelso Girls Invite attracted just 80 girls. Hudson’s Bay’s Allison Blaine was just getting into wrestling at the time, unaware of what the sport would turn into through her career.

Blaine, a two-time state champion, won by a 10-4 decision in the 135-pound championship Saturday in a rematch of last year’s state-title match with Granger’s Viktorya Torres.

“It’s crazy how much it’s grown,” said Blaine, a senior. “I’m so lucky it grew when it did because I wouldn’t have had anybody to compete with.”

Blaine is now the state’s top-ranked 135-pounder and shows each day why girls are coming out in droves.

“When they can come out and prove themselves, it feels good,” Blaine explained. “You can show that ‘I’m a beast; I’m not just a pretty little thing on the sidelines.’ You can do both.”

Union’s Riley Aamold noted how important tournaments like Saturday’s are to the newcomers. The defending state champions have several new wrestlers joining the ranks.

“We always welcome the new people and get them started on the basics right away so they feel like they have a chance,” Aamold said. “It’s good to see them get a chance at a big tournament and learn what this sport is all about.”

Watching Aamold’s 130-pound championship match with Federal Way’s London Houston, one would be hard pressed not to appreciate the sport.

Aamold trailed 6-3 in the second round and appeared overmatched against the strong Houston. But nearly a minute into the second round, Aamold got out of a cradle and turned it into a quick pin in her favor.

“I noticed that were wasn’t as much pressure, so I grabbed the leg and could feel that I could lean back,” Aamold detailed. “I let her get the cradle again so I could bridge out of it and it was just there. As soon as she turned, it was over. I leaned back and watched the shoulder go down.”

Aamold let out a roar to the packed crowd in Kelso’s gymnasium.

“It makes me feel like I’m actually at the top of the state,” the junior said. “I was thinking in my match, ‘Pretend this is your state finals.’ It just gives me a whole lot of confidence.”

Union placed 14th as a team, and will next wrestle at the Clark County Championships on Friday and Saturday at Skyview.

KELSO GIRLS INVITATIONAL

Team scores — 1. White River 197, 2. Hanford 190.5, 3. Kennewick 163.5, 4. Sunnyside 158, 5. Pasco 149. Also: 10. Washougal 129, 14. Union 93, 16. Kelso 86.5, 25. Skyview 72, 27. Hudson’s Bay 71, 34. Camas 65, 45. Castle Rock 54, 50. Ridgefield 45.5, 74. Stevenson 24, 75. R.A. Long 23, 78. Fort Vancouver 19, 97. Woodland 4.

Saturday’s Championship Matches

100 — Kayla McKinley-Johnson (Federal Way) p. Emma Baertlein (Oregon City), 4:50; 105 — Isabella Morales (Toppenish) d. Taylor Wilson (Hanford), SV 6-4; 110 — Emily Mendez (Ohtello) d. Alexxus Ramos (Sunnyside), 8-1; 115 — Molly Williams (Redmond) p. Alice Rickett (Hillsboro), :52; 120 —Holly Beaudoin (North Kitsap) p. Shelby Moore (White River), :59; 125 — Claire DiCugno (White River) d. Jazmin Mercado (Pasco), 3-2; 130 — Riley Aamold (Union) p. London Houston (Federal Way), 2:57; 135 — Allison Blaine (Hudson’s Bay) d. Viktorya Torres (Granger), 10-4; 140 —Jalia Williams (White River) p. Camryn Erickson (Yelm), :45; 145 — Destiny Rodriguez (West Linn) p. Kenzie Cormier (North Kitsap), 1:55; 155 — Shannon Workinger (Quincy) d. Celeste Zinn (Lakes), 2-0; 170 —Alexia Asselin (Kennewick) p. Alex Brulotte (Ferndale), 3:55; 190 — Katelynn Gelston (Hanford) p. Elizabeth Miranda, :59; 235 — Chanel Siva (Stanwood) p. Goddess Ma’alona-Faletogo (Jefferson), 5:07.

Medalists

100 — 3. Aaliyah Escamilla (Warden), 4. Alazaye Romero (Toppenish), 5. Mia Zuniga (Granger), 6. Griselda Cuevas (Jefferson), 7. Mariah Hinojosa (Pasco), 8. Alexia Fabian (Chiawana); 105 — 3. Nizhoni Tallman (Granger), 4. Nayeli Flores (Walla Walla), 5. Uruwa Abe (Ridgefield), 6. Kelsey Ibarra (Wenatchee), 7. Julia Richards (Puyallup), 8. Hope Jose-Day (Ferndale); 110 —3. Makayla Beaudoin (North Kitsap), 4. Anna DiCugno (White River), 5. Kelsey Loeun (Mead), 6. Shanoah Shanes (Sedro-Woolley), 7. Alexis Monday (Othello), 8. Annalese Coakley (Lakes); 115 — 3. Bianca Johnson (Moses Lake), 4. Kendra Perez (North Central), 5. Lyqualah Kinsey (Pasco), 6. Emma Jones (Scappoose), 7. Jenna Beddow (White River), 8. Roxsana Cisneros (Sunnyside); 120 — 3. Natasha Puzon (Enumclaw), 4. Lili Luna (Toppenish), 5. Ayana Medina (Hillsboro), 6. Tyler Rabang (Century), 7. Sofia Correa (Pasco), 8. Aleksi Donahue (Washougal); 125 — 3. Ruby Rios (Toppenish), 4. Maria Gardner (Hanford), 5. Alejandra Ayers (Union), 6. Leah Hiatt (Redmond), 7. Joanna Vanderwood (Graham-Kapowsin), 8. Natasha Dugger (W.F. West); 130 — 3. Bella Amaro (Scappoose), 4. Ebonney Bowhay (Mount Baker), 5. Kayla Trujillo (Eatonville), 6. Joselyn Ortiz (Washougal), 7. Melina Aguilar (Washougal), 8. Kyla Shoddy (Kelso); 135 — 3. Erica Grant (Olympia), 4. Annelise Whitaker (Walla Walla), 5. Elise Scrafford (North Kitsap), 6. Riley Guerrero (Sunnyside), 7. Mollee Weddle (Grandview), 8. Mirina Enderlin (Hanford); 140 — 3. Ciera Skelly (Aberdeen), 4. Hailey Say (Hanford), 5. Brittany Discolo (Graham-Kapowsin), 6. Lindsey Rojas (Kennewick), 7. Abby Piper (North Central), 8. Ernestfina Ortega (Kennewick); 145 — 3. Ivy Kraght (Kentwood), 4. Carly Smith (Yelm), 5. Maria Hawthorne (White River), 6. Marion Harmsen (Emerald Ridge), 7. Cheyann Rendon (Sunnyside), 8. Brenda Rios (Kamiakin); 155 —3. Jennifer Tongi (Federal Way), 4. Nevaeh Cassidy (Union), 5. Ayanna Asselin (Kennewick), 6. Aubreyanna Asselin (Kennewick), 7. Lacey Klopman (Washougal), 8. Angalee Beck (Warden); 170 — 3. Kiley Hubby (Lake Stevens), 4. Erin Kremer (Kentwood), 5. Sierra Mason (Newport), 6. Alexandria Sanford (Kentwood), 7. Katelyn Cera (Mountain View), 8. Katie Gakin (Aberdeen); 190 — 3. Eleanor Fair (Sedro-Woolley), 4. Autumn Aho (Camas), 5. Vanessa Brooks (Washougal), 6. Hailey Nelson (Ferndale), 7. Jade Vollner (Warrneton), 8. Aurora Carranza (Wenatchee); 235 — 3. Anna Schander (Stanwood), 4. Raina Herzog (Cottage Grove), 5. Jaelyn Sayler (Skyview), 6. Maddi Norris (Mount Baker), 7. Justice Valenzuela (Aberdeen), 8. Taleah Vaomu (Muckleshoot Tribal).