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Strasburg brings joy, big hits to volleyball court!!

Posted in Girls Basketball, Softball, Volleyball on September 17, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Madeline Strasburg, seen here in a picture by Shelli Trumbull shot during last year’s softball season, is a multi-sport athlete who cooks, takes photos of her own and brings a sense of joy to everything she does.

Montana takes and Montana gives.

Three of Coupeville’s best football players from recent times — Dalton Engle, Mitch Pelroy and Tim Walstad — are currently attending Montana Western University, where the trio is putting in time and work in an effort to eventually see playing time on the gridiron with the Bulldogs.

In return, Big Sky Country has given Coupeville High School a key member of this year’s varsity volleyball team in the form of sophomore outside hitter Madeline Strasburg. With her spark-plug play this season (“Madeline is a go-getter and turning out to be one of our strongest, most consistent hitters,” said CHS coach Toni Crebbin), consider it a fair trade.

Strasburg has actually been on Whidbey for a while, also playing basketball and softball for the Wolves, but she first picked up her love for volleyball while living in Montana as a grade-schooler.

“I met the high school volleyball coach (Bill Dirkes) through my mom and he had told me I should play volleyball in the fall. I was only going into the fifth grade and I had never played before so I was very nervous!,” Strasburg said. “He told me I would do well, and I did.

“He was the person who taught me and made me love the sport,” she added. “I loved watching his girls play, and I don’t think it has occurred to me yet that I am now one of those girls.”

Strasburg, who also credits her mom for always pushing her to do her best, while offering tons of support, is still a work in progress on the court.

“I feel I am a very aggressive player,” Strasburg said. “I would really like to work on my back row play, as well as my communication on the court. I would like to get stronger in my position.

“As a team, we are young, so we want to gain experience, learn from each other, and be the best that we can be!,” she added.

A well-rounded student/athlete, Strasburg bounces from love to love, much in the same manner that she flies around the court.

“I love to cook!,” she said. “I also like photography. I am in my second year of yearbook class, and I thoroughly enjoy it, because I can be creative and take pictures.

“I also love watching football and cheering for the guys who come to our games and cheer for us!,” she added. “Plus, if you’re taking pictures for yearbook, you get to be a lot closer to the game!”

Her happiness, which is always bubbling up, explodes when she talks about volleyball. It’s clear she gets a a deep, abiding joy from her time on and off the court with her teammates.

“I am so excited this year to be on varsity and to get to play with girls like Bessie Walstad and fellow sophomore Hailey Hammer,” Strasburg said. “I think it is awesome to be able to play on the same level as girls that are so great at volleyball! I am very excited for this season and the ones to come!”

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Wolf soccer aims for a Marx-led revolution!!

Posted in Girls Basketball, Girls Soccer on August 23, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Forget about Communism. This Marx is leading a soccer revolution.

Haley Marx is the glue.

The Coupeville High School senior may not have seen her name in the headlines as often as Bessie Walstad or Cassidi Rosenkrance, but she is the sort of indispensable player every team needs if they want to be successful. Equal parts hustle and grit, with a strong work ethic, she will be counted on this year as a key member of both the Wolf soccer and basketball squads.

With a new coach calling the shot for the Coupeville booters — Dan d’ Almeida having replaced Mike Thornton, who moved to Texas — players such as Marx, who is entering her second year as a team captain, will be asked to provide crucial leadership for a young, talented but raw team.

And she’s ready.

“One strength that I have is my leadership ability. I believe I set real good examples for my teammates and I’m always there to support my team on and off the field,” Marx said. “My physical play with the other teams is my strongest attribute; I may not be the fastest, but I’m strong and I know how to position my body to get the ball from the defender.

“Another strength is my ability to read the field — what gaps need to be filled, when we need to shift over or switch the field,” she added. “I usually play center midfielder and one of my jobs is directing the flow of the ball up the field.”

Marx singles out several things she’d like to improve, including ball handling and headers. Making quicker decisions when she has the ball could help her to make a run at her ultimate personal goal of being in consideration for All-Cascade Conference honors.

“This is my last year and I need to give it my all and this is something that I’ve always wanted to achieve,” Marx said. “I want to score more this year and contribute as much as possible.”

After winning a program record four times during Marx’s sophomore season, including a two-game sweep of arch-rival South Whidbey, the Wolves sputtered on offense a season ago, winning only once. That won’t do for her final go-around in the red and black.

“We need to have more competitive edge and the drive to win. We need the mindset that we can beat any team if we work hard and play as a team,” Marx said. “What we need to do differently is transition faster into our offense. This season we are really working hard on pressing forward, creating plays and opportunities to be able to score.”

While she finds it hard to choose between her two sports at any given moment (“If you were to ask me while I was playing one, I would probably say that sport, but it changes.”), she enjoys her time on the field and court. She plans to play intramurals in college, and is currently trying to decide between UW, WSU, Eastern and Montana State as her next destination.

Marx intends to study athletic training or physical training, with an eye on possibly landing a job with a college or professional sports team. It’s an idea that was hatched by her time studying physiology in Colleen Fox’s class at CHS.

“Her class was so much fun and really interesting. She is a great teacher,” Marx said.

An avid traveler who dreams of one day seeing Ireland, Australia and Italy, Marx plans to study abroad during her college days. She’s prepping for that by joining a travel club at CHS, with hopes of visiting Costa Rica during spring break.

For the moment, however, she’ll limit her travels to up and down the soccer pitch, dreaming of a moment of glory, and putting in the hard work and sweat necessary to get to that moment.

“I have that hope of one day shooting the winning basket during a game and hearing the whole gym screaming and cheering for you,” Marx said. “On the soccer field, the thought of a one-on-one and winning the ball and making a winning fifty-yard shot against a rivalry team would also be the greatest feeling in the world, too.”

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You don’t mess with the Messner!!

Posted in Girls Basketball, Softball, Volleyball on August 21, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Pick a sport and Breeanna Messner is at the forefront of the action. (Shelli Trumbull photo)

Breeanna Messner is tired and sore, but that’s hardly going to stop her.

The Coupeville High School junior may be still feeling the effects of getting back into the flow of volleyball, having endured the opening day of practice Monday, but she’s already looking ahead to the new season.

And her outlook is, as always, remarkably upbeat.

Wherever Wolf coach Toni Crebbin needs her, Messner is the young woman for the job.

“I need to be ready to play any position,” Messner, who is expected to see a fair amount of time at outside hitter, said.

“We lost a lot of players this year, so I am not sure where I will be needed, but I will be ready to play whatever position benefits my team.”

Regardless of where she winds up on the floor at a given moment, Messner, who is also a star basketball and softball player for CHS, will always strive to get to a higher plane.

“I feel one of my biggest strengths is my desire to get better,” she said. “I always give 100% percent when I am on the court.

“I strive to be the best team player I can be and always encourage my team.

“I believe that there is always room for improvement,” she added. “I will take direction from my coach as to what areas she thinks I need to focus on.”

With the Wolves having lost key players such as Katie Smith, Taya Boonstra and Alexis Trumbull to graduation, while Madison Tisa McPhee has opted to play soccer during her senior season, Messner will be one of the few vets.

She and senior Bessie Walstad will need to set an example for a team that may skew very young.

“To provide leadership we will work towards creating an atmosphere that will help develop younger player’s confidence,” Messner said.

“My personal goal for this season is to improve my skills and make the players around me even better. As a team I want us to show improvement through every game and play deep into the playoffs.

“We have the talent to go far,” she added. “We just need to develop as a team with confidence and a positive mindset.”

That positive mindset is one of Messner’s key traits.

After her uncle Dick Messner, a 1963 CHS grad, was diagnosed with leukemia, she immediately jumped into action, taking part in The Big Climb.

That’s a fundraiser which had her climb a heart-pumping 69 floors to the top of the Columbia Tower in Seattle — the tallest building in Washington state.

The event combined two of her primary loves, sports and family.

Part of a tight-knit circle, she draws strength from their support, and appreciates the guidance offered by her coaches.

“Considering my whole life revolves around school and sports I don’t have a lot of free time,” Messner said. “I really enjoy spending time with my family — they all support me by coming to my games and working around my busy schedule.

“I have had a lot of great coaches like Coach Crebbin; she always has such a positive attitude and really knows what she is doing,” she added.

“A coach who really sticks out in my mind is my basketball/softball coach, David King. He has really helped me a lot as a player. He has really focused on my confidence, and through that I am more able to help my team.”

While she has two more years to excel in the red and black, Messner has begun to look to the future, as well.

She has plans to attend a four-year university and study sports oriented massage therapy.

If she can continue her on-field and on-court exploits, even better.

“I can only hope that I can play at the next level,” she said. “My plan is to continue to work hard with determination and hopefully pursue my dream of college basketball.

If the hard work, plucky attitude and raw athletic talent she has shown in the past is any indication, don’t count her out any time soon.

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Kiel juggles sports, life, Tumblr addiction!!

Posted in Cheer, Girls Basketball, Volleyball on August 19, 2012| Leave a Comment »

In this photo by Pam Headridge, Wolf cheerleaders Emily Clay (on left) and Katie Kiel share some love after a paint/water war to end a summer cheer camp.

Katie Kiel is busy.

“I guess I’m just like any other teenage girl,” she said. “I love to talk, I have a Tumblr addiction, I’m always listing to music, and not a lot of people know this, but I’m such a nerd. I love to read. I’m usually in the middle of four different books at a time.”

Oh, wait, did we also mention the Coupeville High School senior plays outside hitter for the Wolf volleyball squad, cheers (that calls for double duty in the fall) and goes hard to the hoop as a post/wing player for the CHS hoopsters? As we said, she’s busy.

“I plan to juggle volleyball and cheer this year, and I plan to do so successfully,” Kiel said. “I have done it in years past, as well as my other fellow team mates.

“I guess it’s hard to juggle it all, from cheering at Friday night football games, volleyball Monday-Friday, and homework, of course, to my home life and my friends,” she added. “It seems like a lot, but staying busy keeps me from making trouble, I guess. The hardest thing to do is find time to eat.”

It helps that younger sister Kacie (“My family means the world to me, especially my sister. If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t be who I am today!”) is also an athlete, so the entire family can move as one. Both Kiel sisters will be looking to make an impact for Toni Crebbin’s spikers, who lost a chunk of key players to graduation.

“For volleyball, I plan to strive for my best in every way,” Kiel said. “If that’s not missing a single serve or going for every ball I will always try my hardest.

“As for the team, I hope we do as well as I know we can,” she added. “We always work together really well and I hope to keep that up.”

Press the multi-tasker on which of her sports is her favorites, and even the whirlwind Kiel has to take a pause.

“Ohhh … a favorite sport … hmm … that’s tough now. I enjoy so many things about each one,” Kiel said. “I love my cheer ohana. They keep me smiling. Volleyball is just … there’s no words that describe how I feel when I’m on the court with the team and we just have this amazing rally and win the rally. That’s gotta be the best feeling ever.”

And, while she enjoys all of her sports and mentions her appreciation for Crebbin and cheer coach Sylvia Arnold, she gives a (very slight) edge to basketball coach David King as her top mentor. His brand of tough love, with an assist from wife and fellow coach Amy King, has helped shape her as an athlete and a successful young woman.

“I have to thank all my coaches and teachers for never giving up on me,” Kiel said. “Out of all of the coaches I’ve had throughout my life, I think Coach King has stood out to me the most. He doesn’t sugar coat anything. If you need to practice more then he won’t hesitate to tell you. Sometimes he can get on my nerves, but I know it’s all to better myself as well as the team.

“I think the way that he and Mrs. King coach is very helpful,” she added. “They can come up with plays at the snap of a finger and they are so well explained that it’s a breeze to run. I enjoy the way they coach.”

Quick to spread the love, Kiel doesn’t forget her teammates, who she reserves a special place for in her heart.

“Without the help from my teammates I’d be nowhere. We are all like one big family and you can tell just by looking at us,” Kiel said. “They each have their own talent that they contribute to the team and in each way they make us stronger and better. I want them to know how much they mean to me and no amount of words can ever describe how much I’ve loved playing with them these past years.”