Makana Stone
Stone and 99% of the Wolf varsity. Madeline Strasburg was busy crushing people in the JV game when the picture was taken. (Aimee Bishop photo)
David King saw the light, and it was beautiful.
The Coupeville High School girls’ basketball coach had long told himself that no freshman would ever make one of his varsity squads, and then Makana Stone stepped on the court, and, like all great generals, he decided to quickly adapt his thinking.
A rare combination of height, blinding speed and a remarkable amount of polish for a young woman who has barely played the sport a little over two seasons, Stone has made King’s decision seem like genius.
Not only has the 9th grader, who bounces between post and wing, already started a game, she’s the second-leading scorer, a feared shot blocker and the owner of maybe the team’s best free throw shooting mechanics.
With the Wolves enduring a brutal early schedule (seven of their first eight games are on the road), Coupeville is surging at 3-3, having won back-to-back games.
And right there in the middle, with the legends (Bessie Walstad, Breeanna Messner), the back alley scrappers (Amanda Fabrizi, Jai’Lysa Hoskins) the generals (Lauren Escalle, Haley Marx) and the never-stop-moving hustlers (Rhiannon Ellsworth, Katie Kiel), is the future of CHS ball — the trio of Stone and sophomores Hailey Hammer (Coupeville’s leading scorer) and Madeline Strasburg.
Told of King’s statement, the somewhat shy Stone was a bit floored.
“That makes me feel great!,” she said. “On the other hand, it also means I need to keep pushing harder in practice, where I can then perform in games and show coach that it wasn’t a mistake to put a freshman on the varsity team.”
All a person had to do was watch one minute of Friday’s epic win over South Whidbey to know it wasn’t a mistake. Stone, acting like a grizzled veteran, soundly rejected a Falcon shot, then immediately got out ahead of the pack, using her impressive wheels to outrace the defenders, leading to the potential for an easy bucket.
Not bad for a “novice.”
“I think my strengths are my determination, hard work, and my speed, which comes natural to me,” Stone said. “There are a lot of parts of my game that I would like to work on. Being that I have only played basketball for two seasons I don’t have a lot of background in the sport.
“I think I need to work on shooting, rebounding, passing, posting up, ball handling, patience, and practically every other skill a basketball player needs to have down because I am a novice and those skills don’t come natural,” she added.
It’s already been a successful school year for Stone, who was her team’s primary offensive threat during the girls’ soccer season. And we haven’t even gotten to her best sport, the one that comes most naturally to her.
“My favorite sport is track. So far my track career has come easy to me,” Stone said. “My speed is my natural ability.
“Even though speed comes natural, track will be a step up this year from last. There is much more to track then just natural running,” she added. “I have to train to have the right form, and also strength. I am really excited for this upcoming season and ready for the challenges that the season will throw at me.”
While she is a natural athlete, Stone’s interests range far and wide. A fan of “The Avengers” and its supporting films and the Sandra Bullock comedy “The Proposal,” she enjoys English class and listens to a mix of country and pop.
“I love to draw, shoot pictures (I can’t say I’m a great photographer but I enjoy grabbing a camera and taking pics in my free time), make crafts, play board games/video games, play with my dog Nike, and much more in my free time,” Stone said. “But, when both my friends and I have time, I like to spend the time we get with them.”
As her play on the court blossoms, so does Stone as an individual.
“My personal goal for this season is to be an asset on the team by getting rebounds, assisting, and also making buckets. My goal for the season as a team is to become more of a team,” Stone said. “The more we act like a family, the better we will be able to play together on the court and the better we play together I feel we will start to get results out of our games.
“I have always been the shy and more introverted one in my family, so knowing I need to work on being more connected with my team is another personal thing that I have to work on,” she added.
And it’s her family, which includes parents Josh and Eileen, big bro Andre and countless relatives who fill the bleachers, that drives her and provides the base she needs.
“I have a very supportive family and I feel like all of them have helped me become the person I am,” Stone said. “My dad, mom, brother, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins have all helped me with certain parts of my life and without them I don’t think I would be the same person I am today.
“My dad has always done everything he can to help me with what I want to pursue. He helps me to be the best I can be in school, sports, or anything I choose to do,” she added. “My mom is also very supportive in what I do. I look up to my brother; he is the role model in my life.”
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