LC’s Tollen wins state wrestling title

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La Center’s Derick Tollen just wasn’t going to be denied a state championship.

Tollen, a junior at La Center High School who wrestled the last two years at Churchill High School in Eugene, OR, overcame not one but two significant injuries in the last two months to claim a state wrestling title.

Wearing a protective facemask due to a broken nose, Tollen fought his way through four matches to claim the Class 1A 126-pound title at Mat Classic, the state tournament held in all classifications each year at the Tacoma Dome.

Tollen, who also suffered a separated shoulder when he won an individual title at the Clark County Wrestling Tournament in January, defeated Carlos Hernandez of Royal 12-9 in the semifinals. In the finals, Tollen defeated Chewelah’s John Crise 16-9.

Tollen opened the tournament on Friday with a win by pin over Abraham Medina of Royal. In the second round, he survived his closest match, a 6-5 win over Deer Park’s Aaron Klauder.

Tollen finished his state championship season with a 36-1 overall record.

Loos, Newburn finish second

Hockinson junior Cameron Loos was involved in one of the wildest finishes of all the matches held at Mat Classic.

Wrestling Clarkston’s Dylan Beeler in the Class 2A 220-pound finals, Loos fell behind 3-2 in the final minute of the match. As the final seconds ticked off the clock, Loos lifted his opponent off the mat and took him down but the maneuver was completed just a fraction of a second after time had expired.

Loos advanced to the finals with a 6-1 win over Kenny Martinez of East Valley (Spokane) in the semifinals. On Friday, Loos opened the tournament with a win by pin over Zeke Culbertson, of Anacortes. He followed that with a 6-3 win over Cheney’s Michael Ferguson.

Trevor Newburn, a sophomore at Ridgefield High School, placed second in the 2A 113-pound division. Newburn lost to Clarkston’s Spencer Clegg 2-0 in the finals.

Newburn won his opening match with a 15-0 victory by technical fall over Cody Anderson of Port Angeles. He followed that with a 5-3 win over Quincy’s Victor Salgado and an 8-1 victory over Tre Toledo, of Olympic, in the semifinals.

Other place winners

  • Battle Ground’s Sierra Joner placed sixth in the girls 115-pound division. Joner won three of her matches with pins en route to her medal performance.
  • Prairie’s Tommy Greensky finished eighth in the 3A 113-pound division, claiming two victories by pins in the tournament.
  • Kodi Walls, of Prairie, claimed fourth place in the 3A 132-pound division. Walls, a junior, won his first two matches in the tournament before dropping into the consolation bracket, where he defeated Sumner’s  Nathan James 10-6.
  • Woodland’s Nathan Patterson won his first two matches of the 2A 145-pound division before finishing sixth, losing by injury default to Clarkston’s Zach Freeman in his final match.
  • Isaac Andersen, of Woodland, finished eighth in the 2A 285-pound division. Andersen lost his opening match but bounced back with two consecutive wins to propel him to the medal finish.
  • La Center’s Jeffrey Mayolo earned sixth place in the 1A 138-pound division. The sophomore won three of his first four matches to secure his spot on the medal stand.