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Archive for the ‘Boys Tennis’ Category

Choppin’ down big trees!!

Posted in Boys Tennis, tagged , , , , , on September 13, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   After opening the season with a pair of singles wins, Mason Grove teamed with Nick Etzell Wednesday to roll to a doubles victory. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

William Nelson is not prone to excessive on-court giddiness.

The Coupeville High School senior netter is a serene, low-key athlete, and he and his doubles partner, Joey Lippo, are the very epitome of the phrase “cooler than the other side of the pillow.”

So, when Nelson jumped a good six inches in the air after Wednesday’s match, it was equal to another player ripping all their clothes off, setting their hair on fire, then sprinting laps around the school screaming “We are the Champions” at the top of his lungs while being chased by a fire extinguisher-wielding Mr. Black.

In other words, you knew big stuff had gone down.

What inspired this show of emotion?

Nelson and Lippo had rallied twice, once from a set down, then from a 3-0 hole in the third set, to stun a very good Kingston doubles duo and stay unbeaten on the season.

Even better, their 3-6, 6-0, 6-4 victory proved to be the difference as lil’ 1A Coupeville (227 students) knocked off their visitors, sending the 2A Buccaneers (605 students) home on the losing end of a 4-3 contest.

The non-conference win, coming on the heels of a pair of razor-thin 4-3 losses to other 2A schools, lifts the Wolves to 1-2 and gives them momentum heading into an important match.

That comes Friday, when Coupeville heads to Silverdale to face Klahowya in the first league match of the season.

As two-time defending 1A Olympic League champs, CHS would like nothing more than to get off to a strong start with a win over their toughest league rival.

If the Wolf doubles teams play Friday like they did Wednesday, that shouldn’t be a problem.

Along with Lippo and Nelson, CHS also got wins from the duos of Nick Etzell/Mason Grove (who threw down a double bagel, then tried to explain to their parents how that phrase translates to a 6-0, 6-0 win) and Zach Ginnings/Drake Borden.

Grove and Ginnings are also 3-0 on the young season, giving Coupeville four unbeaten players.

Rounding out the Wolf winners Wednesday was #3 singles ace Nile Lockwood, who crawled off his death bed, ignored possible pneumonia and rolled to a straight-sets victory.

Complete Wednesday results:

Varsity:

1st Singles — Pedro Gamarra lost to Ian Schmidt 6-0, 6-0

2nd Singles — Jakobi Baumann lost to Ethan Griffin 6-4, 6-3

3rd Singles — Nile Lockwood beat Tyler Bates 6-2, 6-2

1st Doubles — William Nelson/Joey Lippo beat Ethan Sax/Dawson Clark 3-6, 6-0, 6-4

2nd Doubles — Nick Etzell/Mason Grove beat Preston Gunnell/Giani Nguyen 6-0, 6-0

3rd Doubles — Jaschon Baumann/Tiger Johnson lost to Tristan Schmidt/Eli Guedea 6-3, 6-1

4th Doubles — Drake Borden/Zach Ginnings beat Tyler Krantz/Thomas Brown 8-3

JV:

5th Doubles — Thane Peterson/Koby Schreiber tied Jacob Diehl/Skylar Beyer 6-6 (ferry)

6th Doubles — Harris Sinclair/Etzell trailed Riley Odell/Gunnell 5-3 (ferry)

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A battle to the wire!!

Posted in Boys Tennis, tagged , , , , on September 11, 2017| 1 Comment »

   Nile Lockwood teamed with Zach Ginnings Monday to pull out a three-set win on the road. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Are they training killer bees in Sequim and then sending them to Whidbey?!

I’m not saying it did happen, just that it could have happened…

Missing #1 singles ace Nick Etzell, who was recovering from an allergic reaction to a nasty bee sting on his playing hand, the Coupeville High School boys tennis squad still came dangerously close to toppling 2A Sequim.

After a back-and-forth match Monday in which four of the seven varsity tilts went to a third set, the Wolves fell 4-3 on the road.

The non-conference loss drops Coupeville to 0-2 as it begins a new season with a brutal opening schedule.

The Wolves, repping one of the smallest 1A schools in the state, play their first three matches against large 2A schools.

With identical 4-3 losses to Port Angeles and Sequim under its belt, Coupeville welcomes Kingston to Whidbey Wednesday afternoon. Play begins at 3:15.

Facing off with Sequim, the Wolves won two of the four three-set matches.

Nile Lockwood and Zach Ginnings pulled off a win at #3 doubles which required going all the way to a third-set tiebreaker, while Joey Lippo and William Nelson rallied in the final moments for their win at #1 doubles.

The senior duo fell behind 3-0 in the third set, before winning six of the final seven games to escape and stay unbeaten this season.

Ginnings is also 2-0 in 2017, having won two matches with different partners, while #3 singles player Mason Grove is the only Wolf to have won both of his matches this season in straight sets.

Complete Monday results:

Varsity:

1st Singles — Pedro Gamarra lost to Raymond Lam 6-7(3-7), 6-3, 7-5

2nd Singles — Jakobi Baumann lost to Liam Payne 6-4, 6-3

3rd Singles — Mason Grove beat Jonathan Heintz 6-4, 6-2

1st Doubles — William Nelson/Joey Lippo beat Blake Wilker/Thomas Hughes 6-2, 5-7, 6-4

2nd Doubles — Tiger Johnson/Jaschon Baumann lost to Tim Porter 6-2, 6-0

3rd Doubles — Nile Lockwood/Zach Ginnings beat Brenton Barnes/Kevin Meyer 3-6, 6-1, 7-6(7-3)

4th Doubles — Drake Borden/Thane Peterson lost to Aaron Jackson/Liam Braaten 4-6, 6-4, 10-2

JV:

5th Doubles — Harris Sinclair/Koby Schreiber lost to Steven Lam/Dustin Koch 8-0

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He shoots, you score!!

Posted in Boys Tennis, tagged , , , , , on September 5, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Joey Lippo whispers a little prayer to the tennis gods, pre-serve. (John Fisken photos)

   CHS cheerleaders (l to r) Jesse Hester, Claire Mietus and Maggie Crimmins dropped by to root on their classmates.

   It’s still hot ‘n hazy outside, but CHS tennis coach Ken Stange knows winter is coming, so he’s keeping his beard game strong.

Jakobi Baumann goes low to rip a winner.

International superstar Mckenzie Meyer, on her way to rule the world.

The CHS tennis squad, small in numbers, big in talent.

John Fisken was a busy man Tuesday afternoon.

With multiple sporting events to hit in two towns, the intrepid photographer had little time to waste.

Get in, click, and get out, was his mantra.

Thankfully for us, before hitting the wild smorgasbord of events going down in Oak Harbor, he swung by the Coupeville High School tennis courts to catch the season opener.

The photos above are courtesy him.

Best way to repay him? Pop over to his site and purchase a glossy pic or two.

It’ll make grandma happy when she gets a photo of the grandchild, and it’ll make Fisken even more likely to return to Cow Town.

Plus, a percentage of each purchase comes back via college scholarships for CHS student/athletes, so, circle of life and all.

To see everything he shot, pop over to:

http://www.johnsphotos.net/Sports/2017-2018-Coupeville-Tennis/2017-09-05-Boys-vs-Port-Angeles/

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No quit in scrappy Wolves!!

Posted in Boys Tennis, tagged , , , , on September 5, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Joey Lippo fires up a serve against hazy skies as he and William Nelson roll to a season-opening win. (Joe Lippo photos)

   The stands were crammed as Wolf soccer players and cheerleaders dropped by the match before their practices started.

The fans who stayed to the end got a show.

Playing under hazy skies, the Coupeville High School boys tennis squad opened a new season Tuesday with a narrow 4-3 non-conference loss to big 2A school Port Angeles.

But while the Wolves represent a tiny 1A school with barely a quarter of the student population the Roughriders draw from (PA wins that battle 876-227), the CHS netters are a scrappy bunch.

Case in point, the day’s final match.

With play on all other courts finished, the score cards pulled and Port Angeles one step away from jumping on the bus and hauling tail for the ferry, Zach Ginnings and Drake Borden still had one final message to deliver to the big city folks.

The Wolf duo, a sophomore and freshman, respectively, battled blow for blow with their rivals, storming back to win in the #4 doubles slot with canny shot-making.

In a match full of long rallies and points pulled out with last-second miracle shots, Ginnings and Borden displayed a sweet touch on their volleys which earned an appreciative nod and smile from veteran Wolf coach Ken Stange.

His young guns ability to create was one of the true bright spots on a day when the sun was camped behind a thick layer of Canadian fire-driven smog.

Equally on point were seniors William Nelson and Joey Lippo, who romped to a quick win at #1 doubles, and sophomore Mason Grove, who cruised to a forceful victory in straight sets at #3 singles.

Nelson and Lippo, who came within a step of advancing to state a season ago, picked right back up, mashing big overheads and fooling the Roughriders with a variety of slick serves.

At one point Lippo cranked several winners in a row, sending the ball slamming off the court with enough kick to then cause it to shoot up and over the fence and land in a nearby housing development.

While the crowd argued over whether a tennis player could accurately be described as “hammering the ball” (I vote yes and the hapless tennis ball surely agrees with me), the serene Wolf duo remained low-key from opening warmup to final ace.

If they make it to state, Nelson and Lippo, a tandem not exactly prone to huge on-court celebrations, might go as far as tapping racquets.

Might.

On this day, the slightest of nods as they walked off the court, step one completed successfully on their final tennis journey.

 

Complete Tuesday results:

Varsity:

1st Singles — Nick Etzell lost to Kenny Soule 6-1, 6-2

2nd Singles — Jakobi Baumann lost to Hayden Woods 6-3, 6-1

3rd Singles — Mason Grove beat Henry Shaw 6-4, 6-0

1st Doubles — William Nelson/Joey Lippo beat Lucas Jarnigan/Milo Whitman 6-1, 6-2

2nd Doubles — Pedro Gamarra/Nile Lockwood lost to Hunter Dougherty/Jaden Seibiel 6-4, 6-3

3rd Doubles — Jaschon Baumann/Tiger Johnson lost to Brady Nickerson/Kyler Tourbin 6-1, 6-1

4th Doubles — Zach Ginnings/Drake Borden beat Wyatt Hall/Tanner Price 7-5

JV:

5th Doubles — Harris Sinclair/Thane Peterson lost to Dan Clark/Caleb Flodstrum 8-1

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Small roster, big dreams!!

Posted in Boys Tennis, tagged , , , , on August 30, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   CHS sophomore Mason Grove will hold down one of the varsity singles slots. (John Fisken photos)

After a breakout season in 2016, junior Jakobi Baumann is back for more.

Small but deadly.

The Coupeville High School boys tennis team isn’t exceptionally deep in numbers this season, but, what’s there, is pretty good.

Wolf coach Ken Stange will roll out 14 players when action starts next Tuesday, and, topped by a doubles duo with a solid shot of tangling for a berth to the state tourney, his squad is ready to rumble.

“We are a small team, and this could prove detrimental if players miss matches for any reason,” Stange said. “Many of our players are inexperienced, but are picking the game up quickly.

“It’ll be nice to have a match on the first day of school,” he added. “That will give us some useful information moving forward.”

Coupeville is the two-time defending Olympic League champs, and hasn’t lost a conference tilt since 2014.

To stay on track, the Wolves will need to stay healthy (they need 11 players for a varsity match) and focused.

“I expect that we will compete for our third straight league title,” Stange said. “We should also see Joey (Lippo) and Will (Nelson) repeat as league doubles champs, and hopefully a spot at state.

“I expect two or three of our singles players to qualify for districts,” he added. “Klahowya has the defending league and district singles champ, but beyond that, our guys are tough.”

The senior duo of Nelson and Lippo will anchor the team at #1 doubles, while all three of last year’s varsity singles players — senior Nick Etzell, junior Jakobi Baumann and sophomore Mason Grove — are back as well.

“They (the singles players) should shoulder more of the load this year, in terms of individual match wins,” Stange said.

Jaschon Baumann, Tiger Johnson, Zach Ginnings, Nile Lockwood, Koby Schreiber, Thane Peterson, Drake Borden, Harris Sinclair and foreign exchange student Pedro Gamarra round out the roster.

When CHS kicks off the new year Sept. 5 at home against 2A foe Port Angeles, it will mark the start of Stange’s 25th season as a tennis coach at the school.

It will be his 13th season at the helm of the Wolf boys, while he also has 12 campaigns with the Coupeville girl netters.

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