The Washougal Panthers passed up a on a pretty important girls wrestling tournament this weekend for a chance at history.
History will reward them.
Years from now, when girls wrestling is bigger than it is today, the record books will show that the Panthers were the team champions from the first Clark County Girls Wrestling Tournament.
Notice I did not write “if” in regard to the future. The proper word here is when.
You see, when girls wrestling first became a sanctioned sport by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association, there were roughly 160 athletes throughout the state. This season, according to Washougal coach Heather Santos, there are 750 registered high school girl wrestlers in Washington.
Washougal has led the charge in Southwest Washington all four years, having the largest team in the region each season. But until this year, there was no county championship for the girls.
That all changed Saturday. Wrestling in concert with the 39th annual boys tournament at Skyview High School, the girls crowned champions in 12 weight classes. They had the spotlight to themselves for their championship matches, taking place just before the boys finals.
It was a special night for Santos, the Panthers, the other winners, and just about anyone associated with Clark County girls wrestling.
They have arrived.
“For the boys, it’s such a big thing,” Washougal senior Chelssea Eakins said of the Clark County tourney. “For them to consider us to be in such a big tournament, it’s an honor.”
Eakins was one of five Panthers to win individual titles Saturday night, leading to the team victory.
“We take a lot of pride in our wrestling program at Washougal,” Santos said. “To be able to take home the very first Clark County trophy is special. The girls got after it from the get-go.”
The Panthers were expected to win — remember, they have been the leaders in this sport in Southwest Washington since its inception — but it still meant something to earn that trophy.
In fact, they could have traveled to Hoquiam on Saturday for a much bigger tournament. But there was no way Washougal could miss out on this first-of-its-kind event.
“Clark County is more important to us,” Santos said. “Our hometown, our region, is more important. There was never a doubt with any of the girls. They wanted to represent at Clark County. It’s a real honor.”
That word keeps appearing: Honor.
That’s because the girls understand what they are doing here.
They understand that it is not all about them, but about the future of the sport. It is their honor to be the pioneers.
“It’s crazy,” Eakins said, looking back on that first sanctioned season, when she was a freshman wrestler. “We walk into tournaments now, and it’s bigger than you can ever imagine. No way we expected this kind of growth.”
The state tournament used to be eight-person brackets. Now, just like the boys, there are 16-wrestler brackets.
There are differences, of course. There are two fewer weight classes in girls wrestling.
And there is no classification distinction — Class 1A athletes from La Center take on Class 4A athletes, for example.
Not all of the eight-person brackets were filled at Clark County.
One winner, Battle Ground’s Mixtley Simon, was the only wrestler in her weight class. She said she did not feel like she earned anything because she didn’t wrestle anyone.
Hopefully, one day, she will be proud of the accomplishment.
Remember, the sport is in its early stages. Years from now, when the bracket is filled, Simon will be able to say she was among the first Clark County champions in girls wrestling.
That is special. That is an honor.
“I feel like it was our coming out, like the debutante’s ball,” Santos said. “We’ve always been proud of our guys. Clark County is always a big deal for the guys. The girls wanted their shot, too. They didn’t want to be left behind.
“We wanted to put on a good show for all of Clark County, to show the fans that girls can wrestle. I hope they enjoyed it. I know I did.”
Paul Valencia covers high school sports for The Columbian. He can be reached at 360-735-4557 or e-mail at paul.valencia@columbian.com
