“We put up a good fight”

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“We put up a good fight”

January 29, 2022 by David Svien

Lyla Stuurmans and Co. played hard Saturday but fell at Oak Harbor. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Tough start, better finish.

Missing four key players Saturday, the Coupeville High School varsity girls basketball team struggled in the first half at Oak Harbor, before finishing strongly.

Unfortunately, the 2B Wolves, who only had seven players hit the floor, couldn’t complete the comeback against their 3A neighbors and fell 54-33.

The non-conference loss, coming in a game thrown together at virtually the last moment, drops Coupeville to 6-5.

The Wolves return to the floor Tuesday, hosting 2A Sedro-Woolley in another game recently added to the schedule.

After that comes a three-game stretch which will determine Coupeville’s playoff fate.

The Wolves travel to Friday Harbor Feb. 4, trek to La Conner Feb. 10, then host Friday Harbor on Senior Night Feb. 12

Two of the three 2B schools in the seven-team Northwest 2B/1B League make the postseason, and powerhouse La Conner (3-0 overall against Coupeville and Friday Harbor) has (almost) clinched the #1 seed.

The Wolves, who are 0-1 in the three-team mini-rumble, sit a half-game up on Friday Harbor (0-2) in the pursuit of the #2 seed.

Whichever of the two schools gets that second slot faces Auburn Adventist in a loser-out district playoff game in Coupeville Feb. 15.

Win there, and you play in the district title game Feb. 17 — also at CHS — with both teams in that game earning trips to the state tourney.

While the next two weeks will determine if Coupeville’s girls can get to the big dance for the first time since 2016, Saturday’s game was a chance to go toe-to-toe with the biggest school on Whidbey Island.

Putting nine girls into the scoring column — led by 13 points from Heidy Hurtado — Oak Harbor jumped on the undermanned Wolves, however.

Up 19-6 by the first break, the Wildcats stretched their lead out to 36-14 at halftime.

Coupeville put together its best run in the third quarter, with freshmen Savina Wells and Lyla Stuurmans knocking down three-balls during a 10-4 surge.

As she reflected on the game, and the strong effort put out by the players she had in uniform, CHS coach Megan Smith was philosophical about things.

“Lots of turnovers in the first half really hurt us,” she said. “Made some adjustments at halftime and came out much stronger in the second half.

“Put up a good fight, but it was just too late into the game to turn it on,” Smith added. “Good learning game though.”

Junior gunner Maddie Georges tied Hurtado for game-high honors, flipping the nets on four treys as she rolled up 13 points of her own.

Savina Wells backed her up with nine points, including a perfect six-for-six performance at the free throw line, while Stuurmans added her three-ball.

Everyone who played for Coupeville scored Saturday, with Nezi Keiper, Izzy Wells, Audrianna Shaw, and Carolyn Lhamon each netting a bucket.

No JV game:

Saturday’s Island rivalry matchup was varsity only, with Coupeville’s second squad taking the night off.