Danica Strong scored a team-high 13 points Tuesday on her 18th birthday. (Photo courtesy Danette Beckley)
She was born for this.
While celebrating her 18th birthday Tuesday, Coupeville High School senior Danica Strong proved to be the deadliest shooter in a Wolf uniform, raining down a trio of three-balls en route to a team-high 13 points.
The game itself didn’t end the way her fans wanted, as an absolutely brutal 10-minute-plus stretch threw things off after a super-strong start, eventually sending CHS to a 63-48 loss to visiting Friday Harbor.
But, for those who wanted to witness Dakota’s big sis make the nets bounce, they got their money’s worth.
Tuesday’s tilt, the first home game of 2026, was a Jekyll ‘n Hyde affair which drops Coupeville to 0-3 in Northwest 2B/1B League action, 2-8 overall.
When the Wolves were on the rampage, they impressed on both ends of the floor. But when the rim turned unforgiving, it made for a mountain of frustration.
The first quarter was a thing of beauty, to be sure, with Scout Smith’s squad flying from end to end, ripping down rebounds, terrorizing shooters, and knocking down buckets at a dizzying rate.
Haylee Armstrong opened things with a three-ball from the right side — part of a nine-point run by the Wolf junior in the opening frame — and CHS bolted out to a 23-14 lead by the first break.
Everything was dropping for Coupeville early on, whether it was from behind the arc, at the free throw line, or in the paint.
Strong slapped home a layup off of a strong entry pass from Teagan Calkins, while Adeline Maynes, Tenley Stuurmans, and Arianna Cunningham all drilled jumpers on the move, each basket generating a roar from the crowd.
Things slowed down a bit in the second quarter, with Friday Harbor pulling back within 28-27, but the Wolves had an answer, hitting three straight buckets to end the half on a positive note.
Freshman Kennedy O’Neill converted a basket off of another laser pass from Calkins, while Armstrong and Stuurmans provided back-to-back jumpers, and things were looking good.
Until they weren’t.
Coupeville’s shooting touch, which had been so flawless, suddenly went AWOL and stayed that way for quite some time.
Up 34-27 with seconds to go in the second quarter, the Wolves went without a field goal across the entire third frame and several minutes into the fourth, allowing Friday Harbor to crack open the game with a 27-1 tear.
What had been a romp unexpectedly turned into a 54-35 deficit, with the pain not broken until Strong rippled the nets on a three-ball to finally stop the bloodbath.
Coupeville played the final six minutes in much the same way it had handled business in the opening quarter, closing on a 13-9 mini-run, but it was too late to fully recover.
Strong finished with 13 points, while Armstrong (12), Stuurmans (9), Cunningham (5), O’Neill (4), Calkins (3), and Maynes (2) also scored, with Sydney Van Dyke chipping in on the defensive end of the floor.
While it wasn’t their birthdays, two Wolves hit personal career scoring milestones in the game.
Armstrong is the 66th CHS girl since 1974 to crack the 200-point club (she sits at #63 all-time with 205), while Stuurmans, a sophomore, joins the 150-point club with 152 and counting.
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