Coupeville Sports

   Jae LeVine and the hard-charging Wolf softball sluggers are a pristine 7-0. (John Fisken photo)

Hide the women and children.

There is a wild beast on the rampage and it’s chewing up and spitting out everything that gets in its way.

Crunching hits left and right, the Coupeville High School softball squad is off to the program’s best start in more than a decade, rolling to a perfect record heading into a major clash Wednesday afternoon.

The Wolves, fresh off a 16-2 dismantling of 2A North Mason Tuesday, host Chimacum 3:30 today in a battle for sole possession of first place in the 1A Olympic League.

The two-time defending champion Cowboys are 3-0 in league play, 4-1 overall, while CHS sits at 2-0, 7-0.

Coupeville will enjoy home cooking and a damp, windy prairie for their league clash, while Tuesday was all about spending most of the day on the bus.

The round-trip to Belfair gave the Wolves a solid eight-plus hours of listening to the wheels go round and round, but once CHS was on the field, it showed no ill effects.

“It was a long day but the ladies persevered and took care of business,” said Coupeville coach Kevin McGranahan. “We got off the bus and got ready to play and the girls focused and got down to business right away.”

The Wolves piled up a quick three runs in the top of the first, then dropped the hammer with a five-spot the next inning around.

Coupeville beat the snot out of the ball, redirecting North Mason pitching for 12 hits, including a home run from Katrina McGranahan which cleared the center field fence with room to spare.

The Wolf hurler finished with three hits, four RBI, five runs scored (and a stolen base for good measure), while her catcher, Sarah Wright, spanked three hits as well, including a double.

She also had four RBI, while Mikayla Elfrank added two hits, three runs and a steal.

Coupeville got singles from Veronica Crownover, Robin Cedillo, Lauren Rose and Jae LeVine, as seven of nine starters recorded hits.

The only two who were denied base-knocks, Hope Lodell and Tiffany Briscoe, both reached base on walks, with Lodell scampering home to score.

North Mason could do little to rally, with Katrina McGranahan racking up six strikeouts and facing only three batters over the minimum.

“Our pitching overpowered them from the beginning and when they did hit it they were mostly weak infield hits,” Kevin McGranahan said. “Our defense again played strong behind that pitching and kept any possible rallies from starting.”

While the undefeated run is the talk of the town, the Wolves are being careful not to look too far ahead.

“I am extremely proud of these ladies and how they play as a team and for each other, not for themselves,” Kevin McGranahan said. “We are playing good softball and taking it one game at a time.”