Coupeville Sports

Hannah Davidson was a defensive dynamo Tuesday as Coupeville scrapped with Cedar Park Christian. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

“Put this one on me. Put it on the coach and not the girls.”

A lot of things conspired to trip up the Coupeville High School varsity girls basketball team Tuesday night, as it fell 51-35 to visiting Cedar Park Christian.

Battling for sole possession of first place in the North Sound Conference, the Wolves looked at times, especially in the first half, like a team which was a bit rusty coming off a 16-day break.

At other times, such as when the Wolves played the Eagles to a tie in the second half, Coupeville looked very good.

Even with the loss, the Wolves still boast a 6-3 record, and are 1-1 in league play, with a long way to go.

Cedar Park (3-0, 9-4) may have the early edge, but the Eagles (and Wolves) have yet to face King’s, and will meet again Jan. 24 in Bothell.

For first-year CHS coach Scott Fox, the night had genuine moments of success.

“The second-half effort was much better,” he said. “We were coming off a long break and they jumped on us early, but we fought hard.

“I liked our effort in getting to the basket, and that we didn’t back down,” Fox added. “We need to eliminate some mental mistakes, but they’re things we can work on.”

Coupeville came in knowing it wanted to do its best to slow down defending league MVP Irena Korolenko.

Based on film study, where her support crew clanked its fair share of shots, Fox felt confident in essentially daring the other Eagles to beat Coupeville.

You play the odds, and sometimes the odds come back to bite you, as Cedar Park dropped four treys during a 19-9 first quarter, with Korolenko accounting for only one of those three-balls.

“That’s on me … I must have watched the wrong film,” Fox said with a small chuckle.

Korolenko opened the game with a three-ball from the top of the arc, netted another trey early in the second quarter, then coasted home with six free throws as she finished with a fairly-quiet 12 points.

But her presence was invaluable for the Eagles, whether it was her ability to quickly bring the ball up-court, preventing Coupeville from trapping, her quick, efficient passing, or her rock-solid defense.

Sparked by their quietly-lethal team leader, the other Cedar Park players all filled their assigned roles, making it hard for the Wolves to find too many cracks in their collective games.

Coupeville hung tough, trailing just 19-11 after Avalon Renninger slashed inside for a bucket to open the second quarter.

But then came the one time the Wolves truly sputtered all night, with the Eagles reeling off 11 straight points to go up by double-digits.

After that, CHS made inroads, fought with intensity, and scrapped to the end, but never got the lead back down under 13 at any point.

Chelsea Prescott, showing no fear, went hard at the heart of the Eagle defense again and again, picking up eight of her team-high 12 points at the free-throw line.

Unfortunately, she was one of the few Wolves to find a rhythm at the charity stripe, as Coupeville struggled to a 13-31 performance on freebies.

CHS closed the game on a 9-5 surge, started by freshman Maddie Georges drilling a jumper to end the third, and capped by senior Hannah Davidson netting a soft runner a tick before the game’s final buzzer.

Prescott’s 12-point performance, her best showing of the season, carried her past a personal milestone, as well.

With a third-quarter free throw, the Wolf junior became the 57th player in Coupeville girls basketball history, which stretches from 1974-2020, to reach 200 career points.

Now sitting with 204 and counting, Prescott passed former greats Kim Warder (193), Julia Myers (202), and Pam Jampsa (202) Tuesday, and is #55 all-time.

Senior Scout Smith also achieved a bit of Wolf hoops history, notching her 224th point to slide past Annette Jameson and become the 50th best scorer in program history.

Smith tallied three points Tuesday, while Renninger and Davidson banked in six apiece.

Izzy Wells (3), Georges (3), and Tia Wurzrainer (2) also scored, with Anya Leavell, Carolyn Lhamon, Mollie Bailey, Audrianna Shaw, and Kylie Van Velkinburgh seeing floor time.