Coupeville Sports

McKenzie Cook

Cook wreaks havoc on the soccer pitch.

With Coupeville having left the 1A/2A Cascade Conference, joining Port Townsend, Chimacum and Klahowya in the 1A Olympic League, now is a great time to learn a bit about some of the players who will face off with the Wolves.

McKenzie Cook owns the pitch.

The Klahowya Secondary School senior may be the single most talented athlete in any sport that Coupeville will run into this season as it joins its new league.

As a junior, Cook rained down 20 goals, handed out 12 assists and was selected as the MVP of the Olympic League.

She then tacked on a Second-Team All-State selection and helped guide the Eagles to the 2A state tourney, where they fell 2-1 to Fife in the first round.

With reclassification, Klahowya edged under the limit and became a 1A school. With a long history of excellence on the pitch, including a 1999 state championship, the Eagles will enter play this season as the team to beat.

At the heart of their attack is Cook, who has been a goal-scoring whiz since she first stepped on the field as a freshman.

An avid wakeboarder and water skier in her free time, she plays one sport in school, and plays it very, very well.

“I’d say that one of my strengths as a soccer player is that I’ve played soccer for a very long time so I know the game very well,” Cook said. “By having all this experience playing I have the ability to see the whole field and know what kinds of runs need to be made and when they should be made.

“I enjoy soccer because I get to play a sport I love along with my friends,” she added. “Soccer gave me the opportunity to meet a lot of people and make friends that I’ll have forever. I also love the feeling of beating a defender and scoring a goal.”

Cook was drawn to the pitch at an early age, and a life-long love affair has blossomed.

“I just love the sport in general and everything about it. I love how it keeps me in shape and makes me have to work hard,” Cook said. “I also like how you get to work with other people and you have to have good team work to be successful.”

As she prepares to make her final run at Klahowya, the plan is a simple one for Cook.

“My goal this year is to help lead my team to a state championship.”

When she’s not busy on the pitch, Cook enjoys watching “NCIS” and “Criminal Minds,” listening to country music and hanging out with her friends.

She also participates in a sports medicine class, which requires her to work as a student trainer, helping tape and rehab athletes for football, baseball and basketball.

She credits her youth coach, David Lowe, who taught her from ages 6-11, for being a huge influence in her development as a soccer player.

Off the field, her family and her church have helped guide her development into the bright, successful young woman she has become.

“The person I am today has mainly been shaped by my relationship with my family and with God,” Cook said. “I was raised in a Christian home where we went to church every Sunday. However, now that I’m older my faith is more my own, thus meaning I’ve taken it upon myself to follow God and try to live my life to his standards.

“Coming from a Christian family my parents have always been very supportive of my decision and have always tried to teach me to strive to be like Christ,” she added. “They’ve also given me the opportunities and resources I need to become the best soccer player and person I can become.”