Coupeville Sports

CHS grad Kailey Kellner lets fly in a recent college basketball game. (Photo courtesy Jennifer Kellner)

Coupeville, taking control of women’s college basketball, coast to coast.

Playing on different sides of the country Saturday, Wolf grads Makana Stone and Kailey Kellner both put together strong games.

While one of their teams rolled to a big win, and the other was nipped at the buzzer, the spirit of CHS basketball lives large across the USA.

How Saturday played out:

Cruise control:

Stone tossed in 10 of her 13 points in the first quarter as Whitman College buried host Lewis & Clark College early, rumbling to a 77-46 win in Oregon.

The victory lifts the Blues to 3-0 in Northwest Conference play, 9-3 overall.

Whitman, which started a four-game road trip Saturday after not playing since Dec. 21, gets a major test next week.

Stone and Co., currently in a three-tie for first place in league play, face Whitworth (3-0, 8-4) Tuesday, Linfield (2-2, 6-7) Friday and George Fox (3-0, 10-2) Saturday.

Saturday’s game was a nice palate cleanser, as the Blues roared out to a 47-20 lead at the half, then gave their bench players plenty of floor time after the break.

Stone finished with 13 points, five rebounds, two steals and two assists while playing just 22 minutes on the night. It was her second-shortest stint of the season.

For the year, the Whitman junior has 195 points, 99 rebounds, 22 assists, 18 steals and 17 blocked shots.

Heartbreak city:

Kellner singed the nets in New York for seven points, including a key three-ball which helped D’Youville College sprint out to a 12-point halftime lead, but the Spartans couldn’t hold on at the end.

A game which see-sawed back and forth in the final two minutes, with D’Youville tying the bout on a pair of free throws with seven ticks left on the clock, ended on a layup.

Unfortunately for Kellner and Co., that final basket came off of the fingertips of a visiting Penn State-Altoona player, giving the Lions an 83-81 squeaker.

The league loss drops D’Youville to 1-3 in Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference play, 4-7 overall.

The Spartans, who are back in action Wednesday against Penn State-Behrend (4-3, 5-8). sit in 8th place in their 10-team conference.

After a relatively mild first quarter, which ended with Penn State up 19-18, the game took huge swings over the next two frames.

D’Youville used a 26-13 surge in the second to build a large lead, then saw most of it crumble away thanks to a 26-15 Penn State run in the third.

Clinging to a one-point lead entering the final frame, the Spartans were outscored 25-22 down the stretch.

Kellner also snagged three boards Saturday, topping all D’Youville bench players in points and rebounds.