Coupeville Sports

Scott Hilborn delivered the only hit in Monday’s varsity game, but Coupeville fell at Sultan. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

They’ve had better days.

Returning from spring break only to find miserable weather awaiting them in the wilds of Sultan Monday, the Coupeville High School varsity baseball squad stumbled.

Held to one hit over seven innings, while striking out a season-high 16 times, the Wolves fell 4-1 to the host Turks in a sloppy non-conference game.

The loss drops Coupeville to 5-5 on the season, but it gets a chance to bounce back with a Northwest 2B/1B League doubleheader Friday at La Conner.

For now, Monday’s clash against Sultan is one the Wolves would like to forget about quickly.

“Snow, rain, and freezing temps,” said CHS coach Will Thayer. “Just an all-around bad game.”

The Wolves fell behind 2-0 in the first inning and were never able to mount much of an offensive charge.

By the time it finally did score, pushing a run across in the top of the fifth thanks to a Sage Sharp walk, two errors and a Sultan wild pitch, Coupeville trailed 3-0.

The Wolves did mount a brief rally in the top of the seventh, putting two runners aboard after Jack Porter reached on an error and Scott Hilborn was plunked by a wayward pitch.

But that final hope died almost as quickly as it began, sending the Wolves back to the bus with their fourth non-conference defeat of the season.

Hilborn collected Coupeville’s lone hit on the afternoon, rapping a third-inning single, while Xavier Murdy and Sharp joined the Wolf junior in collecting walks.

Sultan did commit four errors in the game, but Turk pitchers TJ Hallsson and Derek Feltner were able to escape relatively unscathed thanks to frequent K’s.

Coupeville batters suffered strikeouts in every inning, with the third being the only frame in which the Wolves didn’t take at least two punch-outs.

CHS hurlers Jonathan Valenzuela and Hilborn countered the Turks, combining to whiff 10 Sultan hitters while tossing a no-hitter.

But the Turks used seven walks and two untimely Wolf errors to push their runs across.