Breeanna Messner
Four sports and a ton of books — no problem for Breezy. (Robert Bishop photo)
Her dad calls her Breezy, and she has been like a breath of fresh air.
There may have been more physically talented athletes who have walked the hallways at Coupeville High School over the years, but few, if any, have ever put it all together like Wolf senior Breeanna Messner.
Two days after playing the final game of an incredible four-year, four-sport run in the red and black, bowing out at the 1A state softball tourney Friday, Miss Messner turns 18 today.
In less than a week she will graduate.
College calls, and, after that, much, much more. She will do great things in her life, of that I have no doubt.
She is talented, she works her rear off, she is committed and she does it all with a quiet sweetness that is greatly endearing.
It did not matter the sport. Volleyball, cheer, basketball, softball. She played them all and excelled at them all.
She upheld the family honor, keeping alive the flame lit by her mom, Aimee (Messner) Bishop, and her aunts. The Messner name stands proudly in CHS lore, and Breezy played a large part in that.
She hit big shots.
There was a moment when she got poked in the eye (rather deliberately) during a basketball game and brought to her knees.
Instead of getting mad and starting a fight, she collected herself, stood up and, after a slight grimace, nailed back-to-back three-point bombs to thoroughly deflate the opposing team.
Only afterwards, with her head bowed, did she crack a small (very small) smile just for herself, never one to show up an opposing player.
She was the teammate who reached out to every player on her team. The young woman who always stopped to say hi to former coaches in the stands.
The one who would stop her own game preparation to sprint over and scoop up her young cousin, Katie, when she entered the gym.
What I have seen, what I have heard, makes me think this — Breeanna Messner is the gold standard for Coupeville student/athletes.
I have covered sports on this Island for longer than she has been alive, and she stands out as a rarity.
And I hope that she knows how CHS fans, how the people of Central Whidbey, feel about her.
I hope, that as the years pass, she realizes why people cheered for her so hard.
We watched a young woman, bold and brilliant, shy at times, but capable of great passion, who aimed for the stars in everything and flew as high as anyone who has ever put on a Coupeville uniform.
She worked for our respect. For our admiration. She more than earned it all.
Breezy deserves nothing less.
I hope that you have an incredible birthday, Miss Messner, and that you go forward in your life content in the knowledge that you have a town, an Island, a world, behind you.
You are amazing, and there will never be another one like you.
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