4A notebook: Camas boys beat Tahoma for first state tournament win in 61 years

TACOMA — The Tahoma High School boys were more than ready for its loser-out Class 4A state game against Camas on Wednesday morning at the Tacoma Dome.

The Bears of Maple Valley were forced into that loser-out game because of an 80-45 loss to Mount Si in a regional game last Friday in which it trailed 20-0 and didn’t score for the first six minutes.

It took just five seconds to score Wednesday, with Jayden Stephens dunking. The Bears scored the game’s next basket shortly after.

But in the end, it was Camas (19-7) that was celebrating after a taut and suspenseful game, getting its first state tournament boys win since 1962. This is the program’s third state tournament appearance since then.

Tahoma (19-7) also knows about state tournament droughts, finishing sixth last season at state in its first state tournament appearance since 1997. The pair of wins at last year’s tournament were the first ever for the school, which opened in 1927.

After falling behind 4-0 in the opening minute, Camas led by as many as 10 points in the first half before taking a 30-23 lead at halftime.

Back-to-back three-pointers by Tahoma’s Kevin Williams early in the fourth quarter gave Tahoma a 47-46 lead, it’s first advantage of the second half.

It was back-and-forth after that. Beckett Currie hit a three-pointer with 1:17 left to give the Papermakers a 60-55 lead.

Still, Tahoma had a chance at the end, trailing by three with possession, but it turned the ball over, leading to a clinching basket.

Despite the loss, Tahoma coach Rick Tripp was upbeat and the future looks bright as its top three top scorers are juniors.

“We’re proud of what we did, and we’ve got things going right now,” Tripp said.

Stone scores 34, propels Bellarmine Prep girls

Kiara Stone, a 5-foot-5 junior guard had 34 points on 11-of-17 shooting from the field (9 of 11 from the foul line), five rebounds and four steals to lead the No. 11 seed Bellarmine Prep of Tacoma girls to a 63-51 win over No. 6 seed Davis of Yakima.

Stone came through for the Lions (22-7) on an afternoon when the rest of the team struggle shooting, going 9 of 36.

Davis (19-4) was led by Esmerelda Galindo’s 14 points.

Notes

• Junior guard Henry Sandberg scored 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting to lead No. 5 seed Gonzaga Prep of Spokane to a 79-69 win over No. 12 seed Mariner of Everett in a boys game.

Gonzaga Prep, state champs in 2018 and 2019, also got a big game from 6 foot 6 senior guard Jamil Miller, who had 13 points, 10 rebounds and three assists and junior guard Ryan Jackson, who had 16 points and four assists.

Mariner, which ended its season at 16-9, was led by 27 points from senior forward Makai Bloomfield.

• Richland (22-4), the No. 8 seed, trailed No. 9 seed Union of Camas 26-25 at halftime in a boys matchup, but the Bombers rallied for a 55-43 win, outscoring the Titans 18-6 in the third quarter to take command.

Guard Josh Woodward had 15 points and seven rebounds to lead Richland. Forward Yanni Fassilis had 13 points, 12 rebounds and six assists for Union (19-7), which had its season end. Forward Josiah Baldassare added 16 points and six rebounds for the Titans.