TACOMA — Emotions hit Scott Thompson before entering the locker room to address his team for the final time.
Before this season ended in Saturday’s 58-53 loss to Auburn in the 4A girls consolation round, Thompson long planned to make 2024-25 his final year as Camas High’s girls basketball coach.
Still, it didn’t make moments after Friday’s season-ending defeat to close out the 2024-25 campaign one game shy of a state trophy any easier.
“This team,” Thompson said, “I couldn’t ask for a better team to go out on.
“After winning the state championship last year and knowing this was going to be my last year, it would’ve been really easy to just coach and enjoy the season. But that’s not what I wanted to do. I wanted to coach them as hard as I could, and give them everything I had. And they responded to everything so well. They were incredibly coachable all year and they grew and connected as a group.
“And because of that, I’m very emotionally attached to that and I love that they were my last group that I got to coach.”
Saturday’s game was a rematch of the teams’ bi-district title tilt two weeks ago, which Auburn won, 46-45. At the Tacoma Dome, Auburn led by as many as 15 at 44-29 with 2 minutes left in the third.
Sophie Buzzard led Camas (18-9) with 19 points, Lauren Hood added 16 and Keirra Thompson had 10.
Hood’s 16 points came on 6 of 14 shooting, including getting hot from 3-point range in the fourth quarter to help cut Auburn’s double-digit lead to five twice.
Camas’ two seniors — Keirra Thompson and Buzzard — are the winningest players in program history that includes four state appearances and three trophies. None was bigger than last year’s Class 4A state championship.
“We’ve literally been wearing a Camas jersey since fourth grade,” Keirra Thompson said. “It’s been our whole basketball journey and made us who we are. We’re both going to college for basketball (Thompson to Boise State, Buzzard to Portland State) and honestly, it’s because of Camas basketball.”
Said Buzzard: “The Camas community is just something different. It’s always felt like a second family to me. I love having all those people be on my side throughout my entire basketball career. I couldn’t ask for anyone else.”
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AUBURN 58, CAMAS 53
CAMAS — De’Chaiya Gentle 3, Sophie Buzzard 19, Baylie Farra 5, Lauren Hood 16, Keirra Thompson 10, Eli Gibson 0, Lila McCarthy 0. Totals 18 (9) 8-10 53.
AUBURN — Jayden Lewis 9, Avery Hansen 15, Kamryn Huttenlocker 14, Morgan Richardson 6, Kelessa Howard, Cadence Randolph 0, Ariyana Deloney 5. Totals 20 (6) 12-22 58.
Camas 18 8 9 18 – 53
Auburn 20 14 14 10 – 58
