Amanda Fabrizi, preparing to drive past a defender in a game earlier this season, netted 10 big points against Lakewood Tuesday. (Shelli Trumbull photo)
They played for the shutout, and almost got it.
Using a stifling defense, the Coupeville High School girls’ basketball team kept host Lakewood scoreless for much of the first half Tuesday, building a big enough lead to withstand a furious fourth quarter comeback.
Capping a season-opening five-game road trip, the Wolves escaped with a 40-32 win after surrendering just three points in the first half.
Now 2-3 overall, 1-1 in Cascade Conference play, Coupeville will try and remember where its home gym is this Friday, Dec. 14, when it hosts South Whidbey in the first game of an all-Island doubleheader. The Wolf girls tip off at 5:15, followed by the boys’ squad at 7.
Hopefully they’ll enjoy their brief visit home, as they then hit the road for two more games, as the schedule from Hell plays out.
Making another stop in another strange town Tuesday, Coupeville was flat out brilliant on ‘d’ in the first half, holding Lakewood scoreless over the first eight minutes and building a 10-0 lead after one quarter. The Wolves stretched the margin to 17-3 at the half and 27-12 after three, before the tone of the game switched up in the fourth.
After combining for 39 points over 24 minutes, the two teams suddenly decided to light up the scoreboard in the fourth, pouring in a combined 33, as Lakewood charged with a 20-point explosion.
“In the first half we really moved the ball well, swung the ball, this got the defense out of position and allowed us to get open looks on the weak side,” Coupeville coach David King said.
“We headed into the fourth with a comfortable lead, then we allowed Lakewood to pressure us into some turnovers and quick shots,” he added. “We got away from what we were doing for the first three quarters, which was good ball control, good spacing on the offensive end that allowed us to get open shots.”
Coupeville, behind the steady shooting of Hailey Hammer, who banged home 13, and Amanda Fabrizi, who knocked down 10, held on to the lead, however, and closed out a very satisfying win. Fabrizi lit the fuse (“Amanda really jump-started us”) and Hammer, who also had six boards and two blocks, slammed the door shut with a powerful performance in the third quarter.
“We are getting better each and every day,” King said. “The girls are playing better and we are starting to find a good rotation.”
The Wolves got scoring contributions from a wide variety of players, with freshman Makana Stone tossing in six while hauling down eight rebounds in her first start. Bessie Walstad and Breeanna Messner each pumped in four, Lauren Escalle hit for three and Jai’Lysa Hoskins rounded out the scorers with a bucket of her own.
While she didn’t score, senior co-captain Haley Marx had a definite impact on the outcome of the game, King said.
“Haley came in off of the bench and did a great job finding the open spots on the offensive end,” King said. “The rim was just not kind to her. Every shot she took, she had a great release, the ball looked good and danced on the rim, but just didn’t want to fall in. We talked about it, and told her that these are shots that normally fall for her.”
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