Coupeville Sports

The man, the myth, the legend … Joel Norris. (Robert Bishop photos)

Garrett Parker and associate.

Danny Savalza, Master of Shenanigans. (Shelli Trumbull photo)

Some people bring you a hamburger in the stands.

Others wing it from the ground floor, a perfect spiral of warm foil-wrapped beef and cheddar, that drops into your hand at the very last second, perfectly evading the reaching arms of nearby bleacher dwellers trying to steal it in mid-air.

When he wasn’t running the clock at Coupeville High School basketball games, Joel “The Ice Cream Man” Norris also ran errands for the moms in the concession stands. Twice, that involved bringing me free cheeseburgers, which makes the man a saint.

That he entertained the crowd as he did so just makes him a legend.

Norris was joined this past basketball season by a seasoned crew of pros who kept the lights on, kept the scoreboard functioning (except for that one night when it went renegade) and allowed CHS to host 17 home games with stunning ease.

Often working in the shadows, we offer them a moment in the spotlight now.

Some of the men and women who made the magic happen:

Garrett Parker — tickets
June Mazdra — boys and girls varsity books
Tammy Escalle — girls JV books
Ryan King — boys JV books
Marty Mazdra — shot clock/announcer
Joel Norris — clock
Moose Moran — guest appearances as announcer
Bob Martin — gym supervisor for boys basketball
Aimee Bishop — gym supervisor for girls basketball
Lori Stolee — CHS athletic director
Jamar Jenkins — pep band
Parents of CHS students — concession stand
Danny Savalza — CEO of Student Shenanigans, Inc.

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Aaron Curtin gets intense. (Shelli Trumbull photo)

  Josh Bayne, Kyle Bodamer and Jake Tumblin (l to r) play dress-up. (John Fisken photo)

Jon Crimmins turns his camera phone on the tons of parents using THEIR camera phones to record Friday night’s youth cheerleader performance.

Bessie Walstad sports war wounds. (John Fisken photo)

Amanda Fabrizi swoops in to photobomb Senior Night pics. (John Fisken photo)

      Senior cheerleaders (l to r) Nicole Becker, Emily Clay and Iris Ryckaert vamp for the camera. (Robert Bishop photo)

Emily Coulter will run over a girl if she needs to. (John Fisken photo)

Some times photos just fall through the cracks.

But no glossy pics shall go homeless while I am on the watch. I will give them a new home where people will gaze upon their shiny images.

So, here you go, random pics from multiple photographers. There’s no rhyme or rhythm, just the feeling that these photos need to be seen.

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      The Page Hit Kings — Caleb Valko (left) is too cool for school while Hunter Hammer is old school laid-back.

Friday night was not a great night for Wolf fans.

Three of the four Coupeville High School basketball squads lost their games at South Whidbey (the girls’ JV team refuses to lose!) and about the best news was that at least the bus ride home was a short one for the players, many of whom have been battling illness.

But, there were things (and people) to see, as ace photographer Shelli Trumbull is always quick to notice.

The highlight: the meeting of the Page Hit Kings, Caleb Valko and Hunter Hammer. Apart, they both draw in massive amounts of page hits. Together … good lord … we may have just created a black hole of awesomeness that will destroy the internet for good!

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