Coupeville Sports

   You (yes, you) can be the next Kacie “Killer” Kiel (left) or Julia “Elbows” Myers. (John Fisken photos)

CHS basketball — a tradition of excellence, fun and photo ops. Be a part of it.

As we swing towards winter, the return of high school basketball is almost upon us.

The girls’ hoops squads were the premier program at Coupeville High School last year, with both the varsity and JV going a perfect 9-0 in their debut in the 1A Olympic League.

But, as always, players graduate and new opportunities abound.

I’m giving Wolf coaches David and Amy King — two of the straightest shooters I have come into contact with in 25 years of covering sports on Whidbey — a chance to reach out and speak directly to any and all Wolf girls, and their parents.

All I’ll say before I turn over the lectern is this — from the most talented player to the last girl on the bench, I have seen tremendous growth from every young woman who has stepped up and joined the Wolf hoops program in recent years.

The Kings foster a family environment, and they achieve success while building young women up as athletes, yes, but also as sisters, daughters and young women who walk off the court heads held high, win or loss.

I have seen a league championship banner raised in the CHS gym and I have seen a JV player get a standing ovation when she drained the only basket of her high school career.

Both were special, and both were celebrated. That is the magic of what the Kings are doing.

I have yet to see one of their players fail to emerge as a better person at the end of the season. I hope you all take advantage of what they bring to our school, our community.

And here are your coaches:

The season is just around the corner and we as coaches wanted to reach out to the student athletes that have yet to give high school basketball a try.

We have a very good core group of returning players that we are very excited about.

They have helped create the success the program has had over the last 2-3 years (1st place last year in our league, returning MVP of the league and the sportsmanship award).

This success comes from the current players and those that have recently graduated.

Without the dedication, hard work and willingness to put team over individual play, we would not be the program we are today. We pride ourselves on being a family.

That leads us to you; the athlete that may have played basketball in middle school and then decided to give up the sport once you entered high school.

Or the athlete that plays other sports in high school.

We know there are many athletes that can help us improve and compete with any team we play.

To continue on the path we are headed on, our program needs as many athletes (basketball players) as we can get.

We are a small town that strives to be the best we can be. Our players take great pride in representing our basketball team and community in a positive way.

We have heard in the past that players haven’t played because of three main reasons.

1. My friends aren’t playing.

Our response is: your friends will be there to watch you play and will be there outside of basketball. Don’t let them hold you back because they aren’t playing.

2. I don’t have the skills or I’m not good.

If you have the desire and willingness to get better, our responsibility as coaches is to provide you with the tools to get better.

We are 100% in with helping each player that wants to get better. You will be amazed at how good you can become.

3. I didn’t enjoy it in the past.

High school basketball is so different than middle school or youth basketball. You just don’t know what you are missing.

Give it a try and decide after the year if it’s still not a sport you don’t want to play.

As coaches this is what we would like from you.

Please take the time as an individual to evaluate this upcoming basketball season.

Ask yourself, why you wouldn’t come out for the team and to be part of something special.

If you aren’t afraid of a little hard work and having fun, then the answer is simple, “Yes, I will come out for the team!”

The benefits of what’s going to happen if you as an athlete decide to come and join our basketball family:

1. Better competition within our own program. We strive to get better each day.

2. We will give our all in every game; win or lose we know we did our best. We do not give in and we play until the final buzzer.

3. The youth within our community will see the success and fun we have and will want to play and play like you. Talk about inspiring!

4. Play one of the best sports out there. What else are you going to do with your winter months?

If you have any concerns, reservations or have questions about basketball and the team, feel free to talk with returning players or us as coaches. We would love to talk to you and have you join us.

We will be scheduling a meeting in the next week or two during a lunch period at the school to discuss the upcoming season and get a count of players that will be playing. We would love to see you there.

We do have three open gyms scheduled before our official first day of practice (Nov. 16). This is open for all players.

November 5th, 6:30-8pm

November 9th, 6:30-8pm

November 11th, 3-5pm

Thank you,

Coach Kings