All the rebounds belonged to Tiffany “The Bruiser” Briscoe. All of them. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)
Give everything you have and you can walk away head held high.
Every coach wants a Tiffany Briscoe.
The former Coupeville High School three-sport athlete, one of the rare Wolves to play a sport in all 12 seasons of their prep career, was a rock.
Day in, day out, every practice, every game, Briscoe was there, playing her heart out, doing all the little things, always looking to improve, always supportive of her teammates, always an unsung star.
She played alongside some of the most dynamic athletes CHS has seen, and it might be easy to overlook her contributions.
But it would also be a huge injustice.
Which is why today we swing open the doors to the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame and welcome home one of the ultimate blue-collar warriors.
After this, you’ll find Briscoe at the top of the blog, enshrined under the Legends tab.
It’s a fitting place to find her, because she is the kind of athlete, and kind of person, you hope other Wolves emulate.
Tiffany would be the first to tell you she didn’t have world-class, awe-inspiring natural athletic ability.
And then she would shrug her shoulders, smile, take you down in the paint, bust your fanny all game long, collect all the bruises, hug all her teammates, and walk away, proud she had helped her team.
Briscoe was a key contributor in all her sports, from volleyball to basketball to softball, helping take teams in the latter two sports to state.
There’s stats to support her making the Hall of Fame – she’s #91 all-time in scoring in CHS girls basketball history.
There’s big moments to make a case for her, like when Briscoe crushed an over-the-fence home run off of a nasty fastball from a rival pitcher who had already signed a D1 college scholarship.
That round-tripper was huge on a day when Coupeville KO’d Klahowya, its biggest diamond rival.
After three straight losses to the Eagles, Briscoe’s blow fueled a 7-6 home win which launched a sweet, and somewhat unexpected, six-game winning streak against Klahowya.
But the thing which guarantees she was going to land in the Hall is her heart.
Through big wins and tough losses, through good times and emotional heart-breakers, Briscoe NEVER stopped battling.
Never stopped working.
Never stopped living and dying for her sisters, whether they be of the flesh and blood type (lil’ sis Kyla) or of the “sisters from another mother” variety.
I’ve known Tiffany since she was a very little girl, and, as her high school athletic career played out, I was always impressed by how the important things – her drive, her desire, her compassion, her commitment – never wavered.
She grew as a young woman, finding confidence in sports and life, and she has begun the journey to making a name for herself in the big, wide world after graduating from CHS in 2017.
But, no matter where she goes, and what she accomplishes, I will always see her the way she was when she wore a Wolf uniform.
Leaning in close, eyes locked on her coach, taking in every word, totally absorbed in the game and what her mentors had to say, whether they were words of praise or the sounds of a coach in despair.
Working in the off-season with her teammates, and by herself, committed to getting every last bit of improvement out of her skills.
And then, face beaming, enjoying her time off the court with her friends and family, always willing to mug for the camera, but also aware of when it was time to do that, and when it was time to focus.
There have been a handful of athletes who have come through the gym doors at CHS, or spent time on one or more of the far-flung fields, who have operated like Briscoe did.
They are the ones we remember after the games have faded away, after scores have been forgotten, after they depart and are replaced by new stars.
During her days and nights as a Wolf athlete, there were a lot of young kids camped in the bleachers, or hanging out by the fence.
As they did so, I hope they watched Tiffany, and I hope they appreciated what she was doing.
When they pull on that high school uniform for the first time, if they remember the way she conducted herself, if they try and play like she did, they will go far.
Briscoe’s success was told in the bruises she collected.
Diving for volleyballs, even when she knew she couldn’t save all of them.
Fighting for rebounds, taking and dealing out elbows and daring anyone to try and budge her from her assigned chunk of hardwood.
Regularly absorbing wayward pitches like she had magnets in her arms and legs that attracted only softballs, then bouncing down to take her free base while gritting her teeth and smiling at her coach through the pain.
I said it once, I said it twice, I’ll keep saying it time and time again.
Tiffany Briscoe was a warrior.
When she walked away, at the end of her final softball season, she cried, because she knew it was over. But she smiled too, because she had no regrets.
I hope when she looks back, she remembers her time as a Wolf athlete with pride, and with joy.
Heart, above all else, and none with a bigger heart than Tiffany.
It’s why she’s a Hall of Famer.
