While school officials scramble to replace six cancelled softball games, Wolves like freshman Chelsea Prescott prep for the season. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
Rip up the schedule.
Four days into spring sports, the world of high school softball has come undone, as two of Coupeville’s three 1A Olympic League foes have announced they won’t field teams this season.
Port Townsend, which is on a 51-game losing skid dating back to 2014, and Chimacum, which has won three straight conference crowns, seemed to be polar opposites.
But now the two schools are united in their inability to piece together workable rosters.
It’s not the first time Chimacum has had to skip a season, as the Cowboys did so right before joining the Olympic League.
Last year’s team, which gave Coupeville its only regular season losses and went to the state tourney, had a senior-heavy roster.
Chimacum Athletic Director Tony Haddenham told the Peninsula Daily News Thursday night there is a “lack of adequate numbers to field a team this year.”
Port Townsend and Chimacum chose not to join together to form one team for the season. Doing so would have required the schools to combine their enrollment, pushing them into competing at the 2A level in softball.
The late-breaking decision by the RedHawks and Cowboys to not play leaves Coupeville, in its final season in the Olympic League, with just one conference rival still standing — Klahowya.
The Wolves and Eagles play three times and that trio of games will decide the league crown.
Coupeville travels to Silverdale Mar. 28 and Apr. 30, while Klahowya visits Whidbey Apr. 20.
In previous seasons, three of the four league teams have made the playoffs, so it would seem likely both the Wolves and Eagles are postseason-bound no matter how their seasons play out.
The loss of six league games, especially at this late date, made it hard for Coupeville to pull together a complete 20-game schedule, but Wolf Athletic Director Willie Smith is a man of miracles.
The Wolves, who jump to the new six-team North Sound Conference next fall, have already filled five of the six cancellations and have one more possibility on deck.
Forks, which was coming to Whidbey on a Saturday, has agreed to play a doubleheader as opposed to the one game previously scheduled.
Coupeville has also added a second game against both South Whidbey and Sequim, both at home, and a home-and-away series with Port Angeles.
Smith is currently working on adding a game with Sultan, which would get Coupeville back to a full 20 games, albeit it with just three league contests.
The updated Coupeville HS softball schedule as of Mar. 2:
Sat-Mar. 17 @ South Whidbey — 1:00
Fri-Mar. 23 North Mason — 4:00
Sat-Mar. 24 @ Vashon Island — 1:00
Wed-Mar. 28 @ Klahowya — 4:15
Fri-Mar. 30 Port Angeles — 4:00
Mon-Apr. 2 @ Blaine (Doubleheader) – 1:00
Fri-Apr. 6 Meridian — 4:00
Sat-Apr. 7 Forks (Doubleheader) — 1:00
Sat-Apr. 14 @ Friday Harbor — 12:00
Thur-Apr. 19 @ La Conner — 4:00
Fri-Apr. 20 Klahowya — 4:00
Sat-Apr. 21 @ Lynden Christian — 4:30
Fri-Apr. 27 South Whidbey — 4:00
Mon-Apr. 30 @ Klahowya (*) — 4:15
Thur-May 3 @ Sequim — 4:00
Wed-May 9 Sequim — 4:00
Fri-May 11 @ Port Angeles — 3:30
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