Coupeville Sports

Hurlee Bronec works his magic in the paint. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

The gap is narrowing.

The first time the Coupeville High School varsity boys’ basketball team clashed with La Conner this season, the Wolves lost by 14.

Friday night, in the rematch, Brad Sherman’s squad made a torrid fourth quarter run that fell just short in a 55-52 road loss.

With a possible third matchup between the schools lurking in the playoffs, that growth is a huge positive for Coupeville.

Now 5-4 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 6-12 overall, the Wolves close the regular season next Friday, Feb. 7, when they host Friday Harbor on Senior Night.

The double-elimination District 1/2 tourney, with two tickets to state up for grabs, runs Feb. 13-22.

Friday night’s fracas in La Conner followed a clear pattern – the host team dominated in odd quarters, while the visitors controlled the even frames.

Trailing 19-8 at the first break, Coupeville had to dig down deep in the second quarter and did so, zipping off on a 19-10 tear.

Chase Anderson threw down 10 points by himself in the second, with the Wolves pulling back to within 29-27 by the half.

But then La Conner got going again, stretching the margin back out to double digits at 47-37 heading into the final frame.

CHS spread the offensive love around over the last eight minutes, with five different players scoring during a 15-8 rally which fell just short.

Ultimately, the three-point difference came at the free throw line, as La Conner netted seven of 14 shots, while Coupeville continued its season-long struggles at the charity stripe, hitting just 4-9.

Jack Porter has places to be, and buckets to score. (Bailey Thule photo)

Hurlee Bronec and Anderson both went for 16 points to top the Wolves stat sheet, while Jack Porter banged away for 12 to give CHS three players in double-digits.

La Conner gunner Brayden Pedroza led all scorers with 23.

Anderson, who sank all four of Coupeville’s three-balls, raised his career scoring total to 550 points.

The junior guard passed Marc Bissett (549) Friday and sits in a tie with Jim Syreen for #42 on the all-time list, which covers 1917-2025.

Hunter Bronec (4), Landon Roberts (2), and Camden Glover (2) also scored for the Wolves, with Malachi Somes and Johnny Porter rounding out the rotation.