Fear the faux-hawk!! Luke Merriman is coming for you next year, King’s! (Kelly Crownover photos)
The Dennis Rodman of Coupeville — Ethan “I Have a Real Mohawk” Loy, pauses for a moment with teammates Ethan Spark (4), Nick Etzell (center) and JT Quinn (24).
Skill? Check.
Passion? Check?
Experience? It’s coming.
That was a theme sounded again and again during the just-concluded Coupeville Middle School boys’ basketball season. While the Wolves had a pack of feisty players at both the 7th and 8th grade levels, they also had a glaring lack of previous organized hoops experience.
11 of the 15 players on the Wolf 7th grade team had never played in an organized game before the first time they stepped on the court this season. Facing off against squads full of players who had come up through feeder programs, they struggled at times.
Of course, at other times, the sheer talent of quick gunners like Luke Merriman and Paul Gallahar and the football-bred must-get-the-rebound mentality of Ethan Loy also shone through. Which is why 7th grade coach Sarah Stuurmans has high hopes for the future.
“IF IF IF they play in the off-season!,” Stuurmans said. “We are going up against teams with four times the experience or MORE. So, our expectations need to be adjusted.
“Our kids have some natural ability, but they aren’t going to even compete against kids that are just as athletic, but have a lot more basketball experience.”
For their part, the players seem to have bought into the message. Moments after the Wolves wrapped up their eight-game season with a game against Langley Wednesday, several of them were on the team’s Facebook page pledging their commitment.
“There’s no maybe!! All I can think of, is it’s going to be a winning season next year,” Merriman wrote. “I know a lot of us have improved. But still not good enough. I’m gonna start practicing a lot more!”
While they may not have had the experience level of a King’s or Northshore squad, Coupeville did leave it all on the floor. Stuurmans was always pleased to see that, and she singled out a few players for extra praise.
“Paul and Cameron (Toomey Stout) handled the ball the most this season and really worked hard on their vision of the court and seeing all their options on offense,” Stuurmans said. “Ethan was an animal on the boards and alway had eight or more rebounds and out rebounded everyone on our team each game.
“Joey (Lippo) and Lion (DeShong) improved throughout the season and in the last two games were more impactful on both ends of the court,” she added. “Luke, prior to being injured, was very successful offensively and plays smart. Hunter (Downes) really improved on defense and I could always count on him to play hard.”
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