Coupeville Sports

L to r, Payton Aparicio, McKenzie Bailey, Tiffany Briscoe, Jordan Ford, Lauren Grove, Wiley Hesselgrave, Lathom Kelly, Kailey Kellner, Mia Littlejohn, Hope Lodell, Katrina McGranahan, Clay Reilly, Sage Renninger, Lindsey Roberts, Lauren Rose, CJ Smith, Hunter Smith, Makana Stone, Valen Trujillo, Julian Welling.

Who’s willing to go a bit crazy, while pounding their fingers into submission for a totally mythical award?

Yep, it’s that time again, when we launch the madness that is the 4th annual Coupeville Sports Athlete Supreme.

First I take all the CHS athletes and chop them down into a manageable amount.

In previous years we topped out at 12-16 nomines, but this year we’re making it 20, and no longer trying to hold the number of male and female athletes even.

Not counting track (which is its own weirdly-scored beast) the five varsity CHS girls sports teams won 24 league games this school year, to a combined 18 from the boys five teams.

So, if there are more girls than boys nominated this year (which there are) they earned it.

And yes, as soon as people look at the list, the butt-hurt will begin. As it does every year.

There are some names you would expect to be there which simply are not.

First and foremost, to be eligible you have to had a noticeable impact on at least TWO VARSITY teams in 2015-2016.

There are a lot of very talented Wolves who only played one sport this school year, for whatever reason. Injuries, specialization, what have you.

Whether it’s Abraham Leyva and Kalia Littlejohn in soccer, Dalton Martin and Sylvia Hurlburt in track, Risen Johnson in basketball or countless others, you are noticed, appreciated and honored.

But you’re not eligible for this silly lil’ “award.”

I have to make the first cut somewhere, and the easiest (and I think fairest) way is to limit nominees to those who played multiple sports.

If you can, and do, make the commitment at a small school which desperately needs bodies in every sport, you should get some extra credit.

If and when we have a one-sport athlete who is Olympic or professional level in their field, I’ll reevaluate that stance. Until then, diversification deserves to be noted.

For those who don’t know, the Athlete Supreme is a popularity contest, a Wild West voting war and psychological warfare all wrapped in one.

The previous three winners are:

2013 — Nick Streubel (football, basketball, track)
2014 — Amanda Fabrizi (volleyball, basketball)
2015 — CJ Smith (football, basketball, baseball)

The first year, I limited voters to one vote apiece and there were 433 votes cast.

Year two I started with the one vote rule, then opened up the voting to Wild West rules the last day and we topped 4,820 votes.

Year three it was full-tilt war from the opening bell and CJ emerged after 15,385 votes were cast.

Year four will be the same as year three — no rules.

You can vote as many times as you want, no limits, for 100 hours, from the moment this poll goes live until 3 PM Wednesday.

The only thing that stands between you and a brief moment of internet immortality is the willingness to bang your thumbs into oblivion via your phone or computer.

Your nominees (in alphabetic order):

Payton Aparicio — Among team leaders in 10 of 11 stat categories during volleyball, half of #1 doubles team in tennis.

McKenzie Bailey — Big hitter in volleyball, nearly-undefeated doubles ace in tennis.

Tiffany Briscoe — Starter and big contributor in volleyball, basketball and softball.

Jordan Ford — Key starter in football and basketball, new school record holder in pole vault.

Lauren Grove — Starter in soccer and basketball, member of fastest 4 x 200 girls relay squad in 1A.

Wiley Hesselgrave — All-League selection in football and basketball and led boys hoops team in scoring.

Lathom Kelley — Two-way terror in football and track wunderkind.

Kailey Kellner — Deadly three-ball shooter and co-captain on basketball team that went to state and a starter in softball.

Mia Littlejohn — All-league in soccer, co-captain and point guard for basketball squad.

Hope Lodell — Impact player in volleyball and softball, where she blasted Wolves only true home run this season.

Katrina McGranahan — Key volleyball and softball player, winner of the WIAA Athlete of the Week.

Clay Reilly — Top punter in 1A Olympic League during football, key player on baseball team which won first league title in 25 years.

Sage Renninger — Rock-solid team leader in both soccer and tennis.

Lindsey Roberts — Soccer starter, explosive sixth-man on state basketball squad, one-fourth of possible state title-bound relay squad in track.

Lauren Rose — Superb across the board in volleyball (#1 in five stat categories), basketball and softball.

CJ Smith — Quiet team leader in football and baseball. Staff pitching ace on diamond, tossed shutout in title-clinching game.

Hunter Smith — Shattered school record for interceptions in football, while also starring in basketball and baseball.

Makana Stone — League MVP for second straight year in basketball and selected to All-State game after finishing career with 1,000+ points, 800+ rebounds and 200+ steals. On her way to making fourth straight appearance at state track meet.

Valen Trujillo — Broke school career record for digs during volleyball season, #1 singles player on tennis squad.

Julian Welling — Big hitter in football, rising star on baseball squad.