Wolf junior Matt Hilborn will bounce between the mound, third and short this season. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
Right back to the top.
That’s where the Coupeville High School baseball squad wants to go, as the Wolves aim for a second Olympic League title in the last three years.
Last year saw a mid-season coaching change, as Marc Aparicio stepped away to focus on a real-world job and Chris Smith slid into the head gig.
Not missing a beat, the Wolves finished 11-9 overall, 6-3 in league play.
That was good enough for a second-place finish behind Klahowya, but the season ended too early when CHS was nipped 2-1 by Bellevue Christian in a loser-out district playoff game.
As he prepares for a full season as head coach, Chris Smith is excited to see what a veteran, skilled roster can produce.
“My goal for the year is to be the best team on the field every time we play,” he said. “Smaller goals include creating a new system that will directly relate to my style of coaching.
“To win a league title and to win at least one playoff game — everything after that is icing on the cake.”
Coupeville’s seniors have finished second, first and second in the Olympic League during their three years as Wolves, and want to go out on top.
“Senior leadership, experience of our varsity squad, solid pitching staff and solid defense will be our strengths,” Chris Smith said. “These attributes will give us the ability to compete with every team we play.
“If our bats come alive, we will be a significant threat to every team we face.”
Coupeville has a ton of pitching depth, with senior Hunter Smith joining juniors Dane Lucero and Matt Hilborn in the starting rotation.
Three seniors — long relievers Joey Lippo and Nick Etzell and closer Julian Welling — comprise the bullpen.
Flexibility is a huge positive for the Wolves, as players will slide around depending on who is on the mound.
When not pitching, Hunter Smith will be at short, Lucero at third base, Etzell at second, Welling at first and Lippo in center field.
Hilborn will bounce between short and third, with senior Jake Hoagland manning right field.
Other players expected to vie for major playing time include seniors Kyle Rockwell and Jacob Zettle, juniors Shane Losey and Jake Pease and sophomore Gavin Knoblich.
As he mixes and matches his lineup, Chris Smith looks forward to getting production from every slot on the batting order.
To ensure that, the Wolves will put in work on a consistent basis.
“We will swing the bats a ton this year,” he said. “We will be focused on creating a solid lineup from top to bottom of ‘big game hunters’,” he said. “We will work on perfecting this craft, knowing our pitch, knowing our objective and driving the baseball all over the field.”
This is the final season for the current line-up of the Olympic League, as Coupeville bounces to the new North Sound Conference in the fall. As they depart, the Wolves are ready to leave their mark.
“We match up very well with every team in our league,” Chris Smith said. “Overall, I believe we have a stronger team coming back then any of the rest.
“However I know that all of these teams bring their ‘A’ games when they play us and I don’t expect anything less this year,” he added. “My ultimate focus is not to be too concerned with our opponents but to put a team on the field that gives them a lot to be concerned about.”
The CHS coaching staff has two missions — to win at the varsity level while building at the JV level.
“I will be spending as much time with them (the JV) as possible to get them ready for the upcoming years,” Chris Smith said.
While no one knows exactly how things will play out, Coupeville’s coach, for one, is ready to attack the new season.
“It will be a fun and exciting year! We have big expectations, but we also have the team to deliver.”
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