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Archive for the ‘Softball’ Category

Booming bats, web gems fuel softball win

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , on April 23, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Wolf pitcher Capri Anter teamed up with cousin Haylee Armstrong to shut down Orcas Tuesday afternoon. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

These Wolves carry big bats, and they’re not afraid to use them.

Thumping 14 hits Tuesday, spraying base knocks to every part of the field, the Coupeville High School varsity softball squad rallied to crunch visiting Orcas Island 16-5.

Playing for the fourth time in five days, CHS fell prey to a bit of fatigue early, then demonstrated why it’s the class of the Northwest 2B/1B League.

With the win, which was mercy-ruled after five innings, the Wolves get to 7-0 in league play, 10-4 overall.

Next up are home games Thursday against Concrete and Saturday against Darrington as Kevin McGranahan’s squad chases another conference crown.

In the moment, however, Coupeville can bask in the afterglow of reaching double-digit wins for the seventh consecutive season.

That continued run of excellence was built on the kind of grit the current Wolves showcased Tuesday.

A very-young team with no seniors but a lot of 8th graders and freshmen never flinched after falling behind 3-0 in the top of the first.

Wolf hurler Haylee Armstrong re-found her groove, ending things emphatically by tossing her third strikeout of the opening frame, and then the bats went to work.

Mia Farris stroked a one-out single to kick things off, followed by Taylor Brotemarkle massacring the ball, launching an RBI triple over the centerfielder’s head, and the prairie was hoppin’.

Coupeville pushed two more runs across in the first, with Madison McMillan spanking an RBI single, before scampering home to score when her steal of third base spooked the Orcas catcher into airmailing the ball into left field.

The Wolves might have gotten more, but the Viking shortstop flat-out robbed Ava Lucero, going airborne to spear her liner a foot off the ground.

That got a nice round of applause but would be one of the few times Orcas would have a positive moment the rest of the day.

While the bats were hot, so were the defensive plays.

Wolf catcher Teagan Calkins nailed a would-be base thief to end the top of the second, Farris made a superb diving catch in center to deny a hitter, and CHS pulled off a wham-bam double play to end the game.

Chelsi Stevens socked a pair of hits, while playing strong defense at first. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

On the final play, first-baseman Chelsi Stevens threw out a runner coming home, immediately followed by Calkins spinning away and laying a laser into McMillan’s glove at third.

Do you remember the first time you saw John Travolta, rockin’ the pink socks, dance the hand jive in Grease, forever changing the laws of physics?

Sometimes watching Calkins, AKA “The Red Dragon,” play catcher, you get a similar feeling.

It’s like freakin’ poetry in motion, only with a lot more in-game hollering and occasional side eye thrown at dad Shawn if he’s a step slow in delivering her beverage.

If her defense was the star of the show, Calkin’s bat was a close second, and she joined Brotemarkle and Sydney Van Dyke in lashing run-scoring hits as CHS turned a 3-3 game into a 7-3 lead.

From there, the Wolves iced the game with a vintage 13-batter, nine-run fourth inning.

A string of walks to the big boppers loaded the bases, with Bailey Thule, Stevens, and Shania Kenney coming off the bench to score their teammates.

Stevens obliterated the ball on a booming double to left — her second hit of the game — while Kenney, a first-year player making huge strides, lashed a single back up the middle to the great joy of her teammates.

Shania Kenney, stone-cold diamond assassin. (Jackie Saia photo)

Farris got nailed on the ankle by a wayward pitch, after earlier taking a throw off the top of her helmet.

As she rambled down to first base, someone from the bench hollered “Stop hitting her! She’s delicate!!”

There was nothing delicate after that, as Brotemarkle, her bat smoking from the torrid hitting show she was putting on, thumped another RBI single, before McMillan and Calkins pasted back-to-back two-baggers to complete the rout.

 

Tuesday stats:

Capri Anter — One walk
Taylor Brotemarkle — Two singles, one triple, one walk
Teagan Calkins — One single, two doubles, one walk
Mia Farris — One single, two walks
Shania Kenney — One single
Madison McMillan — Two singles, one double, one walk
Chelsi Stevens — One single, one double
Sydney Van Dyke — One single, one walk

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Deadly diamond divas ding Darrington

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , , , on April 22, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Bailey Thule was one of 11 Wolves to reach base Monday in a 21-1 win at Darrington. (Jackie Saia photo)

When the dam broke … damn.

The Coupeville High School varsity softball squad went down 1-2-3 in the top of the first inning Monday in Darrington, continuing a cold trend at the plate from its last game.

Then, boom, back to reality.

The Wolves unloaded on the Loggers during a 17-batter, 14-run top of the second — only ending things by intentionally having a runner leave early for the third out — and were well on their way to a 21-1 win mercy-ruled after four frames.

The victory, coming against the team closest to it in the standings, lifts CHS to 6-0 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 9-4 overall.

The Wolves haven’t technically clinched the league title, with a game-and-a-half lead on Darrington and Friday Harbor, which both sit at 5-2, with four conference tilts to play.

But they’ve also outscored the Loggers and Wolverines 47-2 across three wins, so Vegas ain’t exactly taking too many bets on CHS falling apart down the stretch run.

Kevin McGranahan’s squad, which starts three 8th graders and two freshmen, can put things to rest this week, with home games against Orcas Island Tuesday, Concrete Thursday, and Darrington Saturday.

Haylee Armstrong (left) and Shania Kenney celebrate another victory. (Michelle Armstrong photo)

For a brief moment in the Darrington sunshine, the Loggers entertained hopes of an upset. Then reality came crashing down.

Up 1-0 after an inning of play, the home team stumbled to start the second frame, then a tsunami of base knocks washed all of its hopes and dreams away.

Madison McMillan, Teagan Calkins, and Sydney Van Dyke walked to juice the bases, before Joltin’ Jada Heaton got spectacular.

Belting a two-run single to center — the first of two multi-RBI hits she would have in the inning — Jennifer’s favorite daughter put her team ahead for good.

From there, the runs came fast and furious.

Ava Lucero plated one on an RBI groundout, before Mia Farris crunched a two-run double to center and McMillan sliced a two-run single to right.

Van Dyke sent a teammate scampering home on an infield single to make it 8-1, then Heaton arrived back at the plate, intent on terrorizing the Loggers again.

This time the junior outfielder pasted a two-run triple to straightaway center, the ball merrily skipping away into the deepest, darkest regions of the field.

To which Farris told her best bud, if you can do it, so can I, welcoming a new pitcher to the circle by unleashing her own two-run triple.

After scratching out its one run early, Darrington could do little against Wolf hurlers Adeline Maynes and Haylee Armstrong, who combined to whiff four.

Content to coast in with the win, the Wolves plated three more in the third, and another four in the fourth to enforce the mercy rule.

Softballs incoming! (Kevin McGranahan photo)

The final rally featured Mia the Magnificent tagging a ball off the top of the wall, missing a home run by inches, before McMillan cleared the fences with a towering tater.

The deadly duo was likely aiming at the snowy peaks which can be seen from Darrington’s diamond.

“Mia wanted me to tell you that her double was crushed to Mt. Whitehorse, but at the last minute Elsa from Frozen grabbed it and threw it back in so it only counted as a double,” McGranahan said with a laugh.

 

Monday stats:

Capri Anter — One walk
Haylee Armstrong — One single, one walk
Taylor Brotemarkle — One single
Teagan Calkins — Two singles, one walk
Mia Farris — Two doubles, one triple
Jada Heaton — One single, one triple
Ava Lucero — One single
Adeline Maynes — One walk
Madison McMillan — One home run, two singles, one walk
Bailey Thule — One walk
Sydney Van Dyke — Two singles, one walk

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Maynes marvelous, Granite (almost) untouchable

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , , on April 20, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Wolf 8th grader Adeline Maynes delivered a stellar pitching performance Saturday. (Jackie Saia photo)

Adeline Maynes was ferocious Saturday, but Bella Frye was just a little better.

The Coupeville 8th grader struck out a varsity career-high 12 batters on the road in Granite Falls, but her junior rival came within one swing of a perfect game, leading the host Tigers to a 2-0 win on the softball diamond.

The non-conference loss, coming against a former league rival, drops the Wolves to 8-4 heading into a busy week.

CHS, coming off of back-to-back tough tangles with strong 1A teams, makes a bid to reclaim its Northwest 2B/1B League crown next week.

The Wolves, who are 5-0 in conference play, travel to Darrington Monday, then host Orcas Island Tuesday, Concrete Thursday, and Darrington Saturday.

Playing up against stellar competition in its non-conference games can only help a young Coupeville squad which starts three 8th graders and two freshmen.

Maynes may not be taking high school classes yet, but she more than held her own Saturday.

Striking out batters in all six innings she threw, the young gun finished hot, whiffing back-to-back hitters with runners at second and third to end Granite’s chances in its final frame.

The Tigers pushed across one run in that bottom of the sixth, thanks to two well-placed singles, but could get no more.

That gave Frye a little padding, as she had carried a 1-0 lead since the first inning.

The game’s first run came thanks to a two-out blow to left field from (who else?) Granite’s hurler, which curled away from the fielder, then got a nice bounce when it touched down.

Running full-tilt, Frye beat the incoming throw to give herself the only run she would end up needing.

Coupeville got out of the first inning thanks to catcher Teagan Calkins gunning down a would-be base stealer, her throw nailing the runner by several steps.

Between that first run, and the one which came across in the sixth, the two pitchers were lights out, with not a single walk issued, and almost every ball in play immediately snuffed out by defenders.

Frye, who struck out five Wolves, went through Coupeville’s lineup twice, retiring the first 18 batters she faced.

The spell finally broke when CHS leadoff hitter Haylee Armstrong scorched a single to center to start the seventh.

The fab frosh got all the way to third base, but that was it as Granite Fall’s ace ended the game with three consecutive groundouts.

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“We can hang with real good teams”

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , on April 19, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Only a sensational defensive play prevented Mia Farris from being a hero Friday afternoon in Blaine. (Ryan Blouin photo)

Give credit where credit is due — Blaine won; Coupeville didn’t lose.

Friday’s matchup of high-rolling softball squads was a pitcher’s duel decided by a couple of plays, and the host Borderites made a couple of stunners to seal their 4-1 non-conference win.

An inch here, a gust of wind (or lack of a gust of wind) there, and the 2B Wolves, who roll out three 8th graders and two freshmen in the starting lineup, could very well have upended their 1A rivals.

But Blaine’s pitcher pulled off a stunner of a double play to thwart one threat, and then its centerfielder went all Superman on the final play of the game to rob Coupeville of a chance to tie the game.

So, you tip your hat, you get back on the bus and mentally plan for another road trip Saturday — this one to Granite Falls — and you look at what went right.

Which was a lot of things for a Wolf team which sits at 8-3 on the season.

From Sydney Van Dyke and Madison McMillan gobbling up groundballs on defense, to Wolf catcher Teagan Calkins bursting from behind home plate to gun down runners, to leadoff hitter Haylee Armstrong getting aboard three times.

CHS came out strongly, loading the bases in the top of the first thanks to infield hits from Armstrong and Calkins packaged around a walk to McMillan.

Van Dyke then eked out another free pass to force in the game’s first run, before Blaine escaped the half inning with a strikeout.

With starting pitcher Armstrong retiring the first five hitters she faced, Coupeville held on to its razor-thin lead until late in the bottom of the second inning.

Blaine finally broke through thanks to a two-run double from its #8 hitter, inching ahead at 2-1, and the stage was set for a tense tussle.

The Wolves had their chances, getting two aboard in the third, but the Borderite hurler, while not untouchable, was hard to pin down.

And then came the web gems, which drove a stake through the hearts of CHS fans.

With a runner at first and one out in the top of the fifth, Taylor Brotemarkle smashed a red-hot liner back up the middle.

Only to see the Blaine pitcher spear the ball in the tip of her glove at the last second, then whirl to double off the runner for an inning-ending double play.

With Armstrong and Adeline Maynes combining to whiff five batters from the circle, Coupeville hung tough, and made its move in the top of the seventh.

“I get on base, son. It’s kind of my thing.” (Jackie Saia photo)

Both Wolf pitchers walked, bringing Mia Farris to the plate with the Wolves down to their final out.

The junior slugger smoked a shot to centerfield which, on a less windy day, mighty have cleared the fence for a three-run homer.

Instead, the ball got caught in the crossflow just long enough for Blaine’s centerfielder to make a superb diving catch while on a full sprint.

What could of have been…

Instead of cutting the lead to 4-3, with Farris bouncing on second or third with the crush crew of Brotemarkle, McMillan, and Calkins on deck, it was game over.

But while the Wolves lost, coach Kevin McGranahan was thrilled with a lot of what he saw from his very young team after a very long drive to the border.

“4-1 against them is a big win in my book,” he said. “We learned today that we can hang with real good teams and if the ball bounces differently a time or two we could come out on top.

“They kept their ace in for all seven innings even though now she pitched 24 innings since Monday, and they play Lynden Christian tomorrow — a league game for them.

“I told the girls that is a very high show of respect for us and our young squad.

“Great game for us and another that will only make us better and stronger.”

 

Friday stats:

Haylee Armstrong — One single, two walks
Teagan Calkins — One single, one walk
Adeline Maynes — One walk
Madison McMillan — One walk
Sydney Van Dyke — One walk

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Our bats are big, our runs are many

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , , on April 16, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Jada Heaton (left) and Taylor Brotemarkle combined for five hits Tuesday afternoon as Coupeville obliterated Friday Harbor. (Jennifer Heaton photo)

Redemption is theirs.

A year after losing twice by a single run to Friday Harbor and watching its stranglehold on the Northwest 2B/1B League slip away, the Coupeville High School varsity softball squad is back.

In a big way.

A Wolf team which starts three 8th graders, and two freshmen, drilled its biggest rivals for the second time this season, rolling to a 13-1 road win Tuesday.

Coupeville, which has outscored Friday Harbor 26-1 this season, now sits at 5-0 in league play, 8-2 overall.

And while they haven’t clinched any league titles — two tilts in a six-day span against Darrington in late April still loom large — the Wolves are in control of their own destiny.

Coming off a non-conference loss to Forks, which finished second at the 2B state tourney in 2023, Coupeville showed an ability to quickly move on and focus on the task at hand.

And that task was beating the crud out of the softball, as the Wolves erupted for five hits in the top of the first — including a double and two triples — and never slowed down.

Haylee Armstrong opened things by rocketing a shot over the head of the shortstop for a single, before swiftly coming around to score when Mia Farris crunched a triple seconds later.

Another single past the shortstop — this one from Taylor Brotemarkle — made it 2-0, before Teagan Calkins launched an RBI double, and the suddenly nuclear-hot Jada Heaton lashed an RBI triple to deep right field.

CHS pitcher Adeline Maynes was in no mood to allow Friday Harbor to get back in the game, firing BB’s as she picked up two of her eight strikeouts in the first inning.

Backing their 8th grade ace, the Wolf hitters kept the numbers flipping on the scoreboard, tacking on two more runs in the second, another three in the third, and a final four in the fourth.

After starting her day off with a quiet walk, junior third baseman Madison McMillan started flexing like a WWE wrestler, twice clearing the bases with a three-run base knock.

The Wolf cleanup hitter finished with a season-high six RBI, scaring the locals, who ran for cover and refused to come back out as long as The Mad Masher was in the immediate vicinity of a bat.

Madison McMillan hits the softball so hard she leaves a dent in it. True story. (Jackie Saia photo)

While McMillan was writing tales to be told when Friday Harbor parents need to scare their young children in coming years, everyone in the Coupeville lineup contributed.

Heaton lashed a single, double, and triple, while Armstrong cracked three singles to lead the hit parade.

Brotemarkle, Calkins, and McMillan each had two hits, Farris launched her triple, and Ava Lucero and Capri Anter combined to eke out three walks.

The lone Wolf not to get aboard on this day was Sydney Van Dyke, but she made her presence felt on defense, where she played with precision at second base.

Coupeville will take a brief pause from league games the rest of the week but has a pair of non-conference road rumbles ahead on the schedule.

The Wolves travel to Blaine Friday and Granite Falls Saturday for contests against teams from bigger schools, offering a major challenge.

Wolf sluggers (l to r) Bailey Thule, Haylee Armstrong, and Teagan Calkins bask in the afterglow of another win. (Michelle Armstrong photo)

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