Cassie Neil
Cassie Neil is at so many Coupeville High School events, it took me a while to realize she doesn’t actually attend the school.
The bubbly South Whidbey sophomore is that rarity, a person who crosses over between the two arch-rivals with ease, maintaining friendships on both sides and being a true uniter.
A three-sport athlete (soccer, basketball and softball) who has played in the same uniform with CHS athletes in select soccer, she doesn’t see any need to select a side in the argument.
“Coupeville is very beautiful and most of the people are nice. But I love South Whidbey,” Neil said. “South Whidbey and Coupeville have always been very competitive but that doesn’t mean that one place is better than the other.
“The students and staff are just all so nice,” she added. “I love going to sporting events that I’m not playing in and support the students that play!”
The youngest of five (she has three brothers and a sister), Neil is South Whidbey born and bred. Her father’s family is from Whidbey, so she’s surrounded by relatives who can cheer for her.
While a pair of bulging discs in her back kept her chained to the sideline during basketball and softball season as a freshman, she has been active as a soccer player.
She’s in her third year with the Whidbey Islanders select soccer squad, and has played defense, midfield and a bit of goalie for both the GU15 and GU17 squads.
“When I play soccer, I feel that I have learned to anticipate where the play is going to be and get into a position where I can be supportive,” Neil said. “I enjoy playing sports because I enjoy being a team player. I have learned a lot from my teammates and made some really good friends.”
A jack of all trades, she has done a bit of just about everything in the athletic world, having played volleyball, ran track and swum as well. Toss in her time on the competition dance team at Island Dance, and she has been a busy young woman.
In between playing and cheering for others, she fills in the cracks with movies (“My favorite types of movies are Disney movies. I also love “Grease” and “Santa Clause 2!”), country music (she’s a huge Hunter Hayes fan) and spending time with her many friends, including boyfriend Aaron Trumbull.
If she can find another minute or two, she plans to join Spanish Club and Key Club this coming school year.
Through it all, Neil has been blessed with a support staff of family and coaches who have helped her blossom into a smart, confident, irrepressible ray of sunshine.
SWHS basketball coach Henry Pope, who recently passed away, was hugely influential on her as a young athlete.
“He taught me to go out and give the best I can,” Neil said. “In 7th grade he convinced me to play basketball again. I made the varsity team in 7th and 8th grade because I put out the best I could like he taught me.
“I wish he could of coached me in every sport, even soccer, although he hated soccer!”
Whether she is up or down, flying across the soccer pitch or fighting back from injury, it is her mom, Suzanne Neil, who Cassie will always cherish.
“The person that has helped me the most be the person I am today would have to be my mom,” Neil said. “She is always there for me. She drives me everywhere and does anything she can for me.
“She has helped me a lot last year with my hurt back and having to sit on the sidelines for the select season last year,” she added. “I know she will help me become a better person through high school. She loves me a lot!”
Coupeville Sports 
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