Camas turns away Sumner to head to WIAA 4A girls basketball championship
TACOMA, Wash. — Just one chapter remains to be written in this Camas redemption story.
A year after losing in the WIAA 4A girls basketball championship, the Papermakers are headed back to the title game after taking down Sumner, 60-48, in the semifinals.
Up by just six points through three quarters of play, Camas outscored Sumner 17-11 in the fourth. The Spartans' first field goal of the final quarter didn't come until nearly four minutes had passed.
The Papermakers led 15-10 after the first quarter with all of their points coming from beyond the arc.
Sumner put together a 16-10 second quarter to head to halftime with a one-point lead, but Camas looked every bit of the tournament favorite in the second half.
"We're in the state tournament and we're in the semifinals - we expected this to be really hard," Camas coach Scott Thompson said. "We have a ton of respect for Sumner and their program, not just this year, but every year. You just have to pack a lunch if you're going to play them."
One message relayed to Camas at halftime was to start beating Sumner on the boards.
Consider that message received as the Papermakers out-rebounded the Spartans 22-12 in the second half and 41-29 for the game.
Twelve of Camas' rebounds came on the offensive end and led to 13 second-chance points for the Papermakers.
"In the second half we got beat on the boards and, ultimately, that's what beat us," Sumner coach Katie Hyppa said. "You can't get beat on the o-boards like that and give up second-chance points."
Camas standout Addison Harris brought down a game-high 10 boards. She finished with a double-double, adding 21 points.
"Something I've been working on personally is wanting the ball, looking for my shots and I was kind of in the locker room reflecting internally - it was pretty quiet in there - and I was like, 'I need to want the ball. I need to score and that'll open up everybody else.' That's what got us going," Harris said.
Hyppa called Harris one of the most dominant players in the state.
"She's a special kid, no doubt about it," Hyppa said. "You can see it's in her heart with how hard she plays. Obviously, her stats speak for themselves, but from an opposing coach there's not a play she takes off...that's tough for an opposing team where you've got to work, work, work every single second to just keep her out of the play."
As a team, the Papermakers shot 42.3% from the field, knocking down seven 3-pointers.
Right behind Harris on the stat sheet was Keirra Thompson who added 17 points and five rebounds.
Olivia Collins scored a game-high 24 points for Sumner to go with eight rebounds.
With a shot at redemption and a state championship up for grabs Saturday, the Papermakers are ready.
"We've been waiting for this moment for a whole year," Thompson said. "It's great to be back, but, ultimately, there's no time to bask in the glory of victory. It's time to get to work and it's time to give our best effort tomorrow."
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Final: No. 8 Gonzaga Prep 67, No. 5 Davis of Yakima 60
The slipper still fits for Gonzaga Prep.
The Bullpups overcame a 10-point deficit in the second half to get by Davis of Yakima in order to reach the WIAA 4A championship game.
Aylah Cornwall recorded a double-double for the Bullpups with a game-high 24 points and 10 rebounds. Olvia McIntyre wasn't far behind Cornwall with 21 points of her own.
Esmeralda Galindo led Davis on offense with a team-high 23 points before fouling out in the fourth quarter.
Gonzaga Prep outscored the Pirates 23-10 in the fourth quarter to complete the comeback.
