Raven Vick was enjoying her post-game meal until the paparazzi got all up in her business. (Maria Reyes photo)
The road to perfection hit a brief snag.
After sweeping its first two matches this season, the Coupeville High School volleyball squad hit a pothole on Taco Tuesday.
Playing at Bellevue Christian, home of the most revered food truck in all of high school sports, the Wolves enjoyed tasty treats, but endured a sour finish on the floor.
Falling 25-19, 25-22, 25-18 in a non-conference tussle with the always-sharp Vikings, the Wolves saw their record slip to 2-1.
The loss capped what was otherwise a strong evening for CHS, as it swept to C-Team and JV victories earlier.
Coupeville, which has yet to play at home this season, heads to North Mason Thursday for a match-up with a strong 2A squad.
Only then, after four matches, plus prior trips to Langley and Yakima for tourney play, will the Wolves finally visit their own gym Sept. 26.
That night Klahowya comes to Whidbey for a major Olympic League showdown.
While the Wolves couldn’t get the win Tuesday, it wasn’t for lack of effort.
“I’m pleased with some things that I saw us do, that we may not have a year ago or even a couple weeks ago,” said CHS coach Cory Whitmore. “I’m proud of our fight tonight.
“The scores may not show just how close each set was, but we left the gym feeling like we left it all out there and really stayed competitive with them.”
Bellevue Christian boasts a very strong offense, and Coupeville attacked it relentlessly, before falling to some big hitters.
“We went at their block instead of avoiding it and playing timid,” Whitmore said. “Bellevue Christian was required to earn the points they put on the board; we battled and at this early point in the season, that’s what I want to see.
“We’ll go back to watch some film and look for areas of improvement and hopefully get another chance to play them later in the post-season.”
Wolf junior Ashley Menges was a key, with six service aces and nine assists.
“Ashley did a great job of staying aggressive from the service line and brought us within striking distance in the second game,” Whitmore said.
With Menges and Lauren Rose (10 assists) setting things up, Coupeville’s power players were able to spray kills.
Junior Emma Smith peppered the Vikings with five, while Mikayla Elfrank and Kyla Briscoe chipped in with four apiece.
“Emma did a great job in the middle of playing faster than the ball, both as an attacker and a blocker,” Whitmore said. “I’m proud of how fast she played tonight.”
Hope Lodell (six digs, two aces), Briscoe (six digs) and Payton Aparicio (five digs, two aces) filled out the stat sheet, while Coupeville collected eight team blocks.
“Our blocking is starting to become a strong part of our game,” Whitmore said.
Young guns roll:
Coupeville’s JV and C-Team swept to victories in the early matches, with both Wolf squads running their records to 2-0 on the young season.
After dropping the opening set, the C-Team roared back to take the next two 25-22, 25-16.
“They played solid, really commanding the last two sets,” said Wolf JV coach Chris Smith.
In the night’s second tilt, Coupeville’s JV swept all three sets.
“We are continuing to work on playing hard and smart,” Smith said. “Communication and tenacious team defense.
“Coach Whitmore and I were very proud of what we saw.”
