“We hustled so hard!”

Feeds:: Posts; Comments

“We hustled so hard!”

January 27, 2023 by David Svien

Liza Zustiak prepares to launch a pass. (Jackie Saia photo)

Kassie O’Neil is going into the weekend full of positive feelings.

While her Coupeville High School JV girls’ basketball squad was nipped 27-26 Friday night by visiting Friday Harbor, it was the way the Wolves played which pleased their coach.

Playing less than 24 hours after a somewhat lackluster loss against big-school rival Mount Vernon, the CHS young guns brought the excitement to the hardwood.

“We hustled so hard,” O’Neil said. “Way different energy than last night.

“If only our baskets fell, we would have had it,” she added. “But they had a lot of great looks and everyone played well.”

The loss drops the Wolves to 6-8 on the season, and now, after playing three times in four days, they’ll sit for a bit.

The Coupeville varsity has a road game at Auburn Adventist Academy next Thursday, Feb. 2, but the small private school doesn’t field a JV girls’ team.

So, O’Neil’s squad will sit until Feb. 7, when they host La Conner in their home finale, before closing the season on the road at Friday Harbor Feb. 10.

Facing off with the visiting Wolverines, Coupeville fell behind early, but then carved the lead down as the game progressed.

Friday Harbor went to the first break up 10-4, but the Wolves netted a pair of three-balls in the second frame, with Desi Ramirez-Vasquez and Madison McMillan makin’ the net pop from long distance.

Coupeville got its third, and final trey in the third quarter, this time off the sweet-shooting fingertips of Kierra Thayer and trailed 25-18 heading into the final eight minutes.

Clamping down on defense, the Wolves limited Friday Harbor to just a single fourth-quarter bucket, closing the game on an 8-2 run which came up just a single, solitary point short of forcing overtime.

Ramirez-Vasquez paced CHS with a team-high seven points, with McMillan popping for six, and Reese Wilkinson knocking down four.

Thayer (3), Skylar Parker (2), Liza Zustiak (2), and Brynn Parker (2) also scored, with Bryley Gilbert, Teagan Calkins, Kassidy Upchurch, Kayla Arnold, and Carlota Marcos-Cabrillo all seeing floor time.