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Servin’ up spikes!!

Posted in Volleyball, tagged CHS Wolves, Hope Lodell, jamboree, Tiffany Briscoe, volleyball on September 5, 2015| Leave a Comment »

This ain’t Sarah Wright’s first rodeo. (John Fisken photos)

Kyla Briscoe floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee.

Kenzi LaRue (16) flies in and joins (l to r) Kayla Rose, Maggie Crimmins and Abby Parker for a quick group photo.

Emma Smith uncorks a little shot they call “The Decimator of Souls.”

Ashley Menges prefers this shot, known simply as “Tiptoe Thunder.”

They call her Professor. Valen Trujillo teaches a class on intensity.

Maddy Hilkey sneaks into position.

Hope Lodell controls the flow.

First impressions were good.

Having watched her squad play Saturday in a jamboree in Oak Harbor, CHS volleyball coach Breanne Smedley was very happy.

“I was pleased with how the team competed today!,” she said. “The jamboree is a time for us to try out different rotations and combinations of players on the court, and they all did a great job of working through that in order to find their flow.”

With the season-opener Tuesday at home against Island rival South Whidbey (JV 5:00, varsity 7), the Wolves spent Saturday working out the kinks and finding a nice rhythm.

“Katrina (McGranahan) and McKenzie (Bailey) were our strong go-to hitters through the middle,” Smedley said. “While Valen (Trujillo), Hope (Lodell) and Tiffany (Briscoe)’s passing allowed our offense to get up and running.

“Also, Sydney (Autio) provided us with another offensive weapon as we transitioned to a 6-2 offense, allowing her to hit in the front row.”

P.S. — To see more pics (and possibly buy some, thereby supporting college scholarships for CHS student/athletes) pop over to:

Varsity — http://www.wescoathletics.com/index.php?act=view_gallery&gallery=8908&league=3&page=1&page_name=photo_store&school=10&sport=0

JV — http://www.wescoathletics.com/index.php?act=view_gallery&gallery=8907&league=3&page=1&page_name=photo_store&school=10&sport=0

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Jumpin’ jamborees!!

Posted in Volleyball, tagged CHS Wolves, Emma Smith, jamboree, John Fisken photos, Katrina McGranahan, Valen Trujillo, volleyball on September 5, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Being a freshman, Emma Smith (right) is required to carry Lauren Rose everywhere she wants to go. (John Fisken photos)

McKenzie Bailey (right) is a tad concerned Valen Trujillo (center) may be making a bid for her role as #1 photo subject. No one comes for the Queen.

Katrina McGranahan (back) is ready for her close-up, while Kyla Briscoe is still a little peeved she had to get up so early.

Sarah Wright, having scarred the court with some powerhouse kills, attempts to buff out the damage.

No one escapes Bailey, the Photo Bomb Queen. No one. Not even Wolf coach Breanne Smedley.

The pride of Coupeville.

Hope Lodell, always ready to operate as “The Surgeon.” No one tell her that the scissors aren’t real, though…

Payton Aparicio (7) finds herself the center of attention in a pack of camera-friendly Wolves.

The first spike has landed.

More importantly perhaps, the first photo has also landed.

Making their official 2015 debut Saturday, the Coupeville High School volleyball squad squared off with a pack of rivals at a jamboree in Oak Harbor.

For more on the actual on-court action, you’ll have to wait a hot moment or two until the next story pops up here on the blog tonight.

This one? It’s all about the photo ops.

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Young, but ready to rumble!!

Posted in Volleyball, tagged 1A Olympic League, CHS Wolves, Lauren Rose, Sydney Autio, Valen Trujillo, volleyball on August 31, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Wolf junior Tiffany Briscoe is a key returning player. (John Fisken photos)

Sophomore Katrina McGranahan is back and ready to unleash her power game.

Never back down.

That captures the attitude shown by the Coupeville High School volleyball squad, which is looking to bounce back from a fourth-place finish in the 1A Olympic League last year.

While those Wolves went 1-11, many of the matches were close affairs and CHS was rarely, if ever, blown out.

The loss of five players to graduation will sting a bit, but much of the core of the team was young last year, which bodes well for this season and the future.

“My expectation is that our team competes every day, gives maximum effort for the sake of their team, and challenges each other to become better,” said Wolf coach Breanne Smedley. “Our goals are to improve with each week, earn a league title, and compete into the post season.

“We are out to beat them all! We talk about all other teams as just another jersey,” she added. “We are constantly competing with ourselves and focusing on what is going to help us improve each week.

“All else will fall into place if we are successful in this.”

As Smedley heads into her second year at the helm of the Wolves, she’ll have a roster that is still fairly young, with just two seniors.

Middle blocker McKenzie Bailey and setter Sydney Autio, who was out injured much of last year, are those veterans, and they’ll be joined by juniors Valen Trujillo (libero), Tiffany Briscoe (OH) and Ally Roberts (OPP).

Sophomores Kyla Briscoe (OH/OPP), Katrina McGranahan (MB), Lauren Rose (setter), Hope Lodell (OH) and Payton Aparicio (OH) and freshman phenom Emma Smith (MB) are also in the mix.

It’s a group that has stepped up in off-season workouts and is intent on toppling Klahowya, Port Townsend and Chimacum.

“Our strengths include the ownership the girls are taking over the program, and their competitiveness to continually improve,” Smedley said. “We have depth from pin to pin in our offense, which will prove to become a strength for us if we can focus in on quality first ball contacts.”

As their season opener approaches (Sept. 8 at home against South Whidbey), the Wolves remain hard at work.

“We need to work on controlling the first ball contact on serve receive and in defense,” Smedley said. “We are also working on getting our middles to run quicker through the middle and introducing combinations into our offense.

“It is all dependent on the first ball contact, though.”

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Back to the gym!!

Posted in Volleyball, tagged CHS Wolves, John Fisken photos, Kyla Briscoe, Sarah Wright, Valen Trujillo, volleyball on August 24, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Kenzi LaRue has eyes only for the volleyball. (John Fisken photos)

Payton Aparicio launches herself skyward to save the day.

Kameryn St Onge demonstrates a laser-like focus.

Tip-toeing across the court, Kyla Briscoe sneaks up on the ball.

Hope Lodell, AKA “The Surgeon,” gets ready to operate.

Sarah Wright is one of several 9th graders looking to make an immediate impact for the Wolves.

Wolf junior Valen Trujillo, here laying down some flawless form, will be one of Coupeville’s captains this fall.

Freshman Ashley Menges reaches for the heavens as teammate Allison Wenzel looks on.

Fall is upon us.

Well, fall sports, at least.

Monday brought the first official day of practice for the Coupeville High School volleyball, boys’ tennis, cheer and girls’ soccer squads. Football kicked off Aug. 19.

Travelin’ photo man John Fisken, whose work has been shortlisted for this year’s Washington Newspaper Publishers Association awards (classy!), strolled through town and snapped some pics for us.

First up, the Wolf spikers, led by second-year head coach Breanne Smedley and returning stars like Valen Trujillo and Sydney Autio.

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Lester combines hard work, fun!!

Posted in Volleyball, tagged Basketball, CHS Wolves, country music, Grease, Nicole Lester, Softball, Track, volleyball on August 22, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Nicole Lester

Lester (center) goofs off with teammates during her 8th grade basketball season. (John Fisken photo)

Sports are a perfect outlet for Nicole Lester.

The Coupeville High School freshman, who will be kicking off her school year as a member of the Wolf volleyball squad, plays multiple sports and has always been drawn in by the opportunity to spend time with friends, new and old.

“This season will be my second season playing (volleyball),” Lester said. “I started playing in eighth grade because it looked like a lot of fun and my friends played too, so I wanted to try.

“Things I love about volleyball are you make new friends and bond with the friends you already have, while working as a team.”

Lester, who also plays basketball and is trying to decide between track and softball for spring, is hard at work on fine-tuning her skill set for all of her activities.

“I don’t think there is a skill that I am the best at, but I am always motivated in working on all of my skills and not quitting when it gets hard,” Lester said. “My goal for this season is to make new friends and become a better player.

“I love to spend time working on basketball and volleyball skills,” she added. “I also love to work out.”

Away from the athletic stage, Lester enjoys country music and loves her some Sandy and Danny in “Grease.”

Family plays a big part in her life, and she knows she’ll always have fans behind her, no matter the sport.

“My mom and grandma really encourage me and help me become the person I am.”

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