Cole White, and the parental units, are headed to the 2B state baseball tourney next weekend. (Morgan White photo)
The road to a state title begins with a long road trip.
Fresh off winning the District 1/2 title, thumping Friday Harbor 11-0 Saturday, Coupeville High School’s baseball squad got its marching orders for the state tourney.
The Wolves, who sit at 16-5, are seeded #10 in the 12-team 2B field, and play #7 Toledo Saturday, May 20 at Castle Rock High School.
First pitch is set for noon.
The loser is eliminated, while the winner returns to the field at 3:00 PM to face #2 Toutle Lake, which is led by junior pitcher Zach Swanson, who has committed to play college ball for Oregon State.
Toledo is 18-5, and handed Toutle Lake (20-2) its only losses, beating the Ducks 1-0 and 6-1 way back in the first two games of the season.
The winner of next Saturday’s second game advances to the state semifinals, is guaranteed to play both May 26 and 27 at Johnson-O’Brien Stadium at Ephrata High School and will bring home a trophy.
To see the bracket, pop over to:
http://www.nw1a2bathletics.com/m2/tourn.php?act=vt&tid=3930#
Coupeville’s diamond dogs, who are making the program’s first trip to state since 2014, will have a much longer trip than their rivals.
It’s 173 miles, give or take a kilometer or two, to go from Central Whidbey to Castle Rock, while Toutle Lake (10.8 miles) and Toledo (14.4) are just down the street.
Sophomore Landon Roberts, seen with sister Lindsey and mom Sherry, is part of a successful Wolf diamond team. (Morgan White photo)
This is the tenth trip to state for CHS baseball, while Toledo is making its twelfth visit to the big dance.
The Riverhawks won the 2B state title in 2016, knocking off Warden, Colfax, Asotin, and Pe Ell/Willapa Valley.
Toutle Lake, which finished second last season, falling 7-6 to Brewster in the championship game, is back for the 25th time.
The Ducks have four state baseball titles, but it’s been a bit since the last one, with title runs coming in 1977, 1978, 1990, and 1991.
Toutle Lake and Coupeville have clashed twice in the state baseball tourney, with the Wolves falling 2-0 in ’90 and 8-1 in ’77, both seasons in which the Ducks finished as champs.
The Wolves also squared off with Toutle Lake at the state volleyball tourney in 2002 and 2003, splitting those matches.
The Coupeville and Toledo baseball programs have never met in a state playoff game, though the school’s girls’ basketball teams shared the hardwood at the 1998 and 2000 state championships, with the Riverhawks winning both.
Coupeville Sports 
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