Coupeville High School boys tennis coach Ken Stange needs more company. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
At this rate, bus rides may get a little lonely.
A week into practice for a new season, Coupeville High School boys tennis coach Ken Stange has the smallest roster of his 16-year tenure.
Seven athletes to be exact – five seniors, one junior, and one sophomore – which is troublesome when the Wolves need eight to field a full varsity team.
Coupeville’s netters are set to compete in the Emerald City Conference for a second year, but may have trouble filling out the required matches in league play.
The ECL plays a varsity format of two singles contests and three doubles bouts.
As it stands now, the Wolves would have to forfeit a slot each match, most likely at #2 singles.
Starting down 1-0 every match would make life tougher in an already highly-charged league.
The ECL is considered the best 1A boys tennis league in Washington, with private schools heavyweights like University Prep and Seattle Academy accounting for the majority of state champs in recent years.
Still, the Wolves held their own last year, claiming fourth-place in the eight-team league.
While all of Coupeville’s other sports teams are part of the North Sound Conference, only two of six schools in that league have boys tennis programs.
The other is South Whidbey, and the next-door neighbors both hooked up with the ECL, which is otherwise comprised of Seattle-area private schools.
With school opening Tuesday and Coupeville’s first match set for Sept. 11, Stange is still hopeful at least one more tennis player will surface.
So, put the word out to any CHS male in grades 9-12.
If they have prior experience, great.
If not, Stange, a noted net guru, is ready and willing to teach the game.
When asked what he was looking for in a player at the moment, the CHS coach kept it simple.
“A pulse.”
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