Wolf senior Alita Blouin played strongly Wednesday in her final high school volleyball matches. (Bailey Thule photo)
“They’re a special, special group.”
Coupeville High School volleyball coach Cory Whitmore walked away from the bi-district tourney Wednesday proud of the effort his team brought to their final matches.
The Wolves won’t advance to the state tourney, as they fell to three-time defending 2B champ La Conner in the final, after upending Northwest Christian of Lacey in the night’s opening match, but that doesn’t take any of the shine off what CHS accomplished.
“There is just so much to say about how this incredible team finished their season,” Whitmore said. “So much fight, so much heart and a lot of belief.
“When we started the season, we talked a lot about making sure that we were peaking and playing our best at the right time, and we can without a doubt walk away knowing we did just that.”
With the split at bi-districts, Coupeville finishes 10-6, nabbing double-digit wins for the sixth time in seven seasons under Whitmore’s guidance.
The only time the Wolves failed to reach that mark? That was 2020, when Covid shortened the season to just nine matches.
While the Wolves lose seniors Alita Blouin, Jill Prince, Maddie Georges, Taygin Jump, and Ryanne Knoblich, six of the other eight girls to see varsity action this season were just sophomores.
How Wednesday played out:
Northwest Christian:
Coupeville dominated at the net, picking up six block assists and a solo block in a 25-18, 25-16, 25-15 win.
Northwest Christian entered the night at 12-3 and was the top seed from District 2, but the Wolves showed no fear.
“We took a little bit to find our groove in the first set, going back and forth with the Wolverines,” Whitmore said. “But we did a great job of finding a way to get loose and create separation.
“Our passing was so strong all night and this allowed us to get our middles going.”
Wolf junior Grey Peabody “was so efficient and big at the net” as she pounded out 10 kills on 19 swings.
Coupeville also dropped daggers from the service stripe, ripping off 13 aces with just four errors.
Georges paced the Wolves, peppering Northwest Christian with five aces, while Jump and Madison McMillan added three apiece.
“Northwest Christian never let up and we had to earn our points,” Whitmore said. “It was a great way to start out district play.”
Maddie Georges bows out after a stellar four-year run. (Bailey Thule photo)
La Conner:
The Wolves struggled to contain the Braves power hitters during their regular-season matchups, but Wednesday night they stood tall.
La Conner eventually escaped with a 25-21, 25-19, 25-13 win, but Braves coach Suzanne Marble, wrapping her 30th, and final, season at the school, offered praise for the Wolves in the Skagit Valley Herald.
“Coupeville came out with everything they had,” Marble said. “And we had a rough time getting in a groove.”
With nothing to lose, and only one ticket to state in play this year for Districts 1 and 2 — it’ll be two next season — the Wolves brought the heat.
“I’m so proud of this team for their performance, and while it didn’t end the way we hoped, we played them tougher than we ever have,” Whitmore said.
“Our gameplan was to take aggressive swings, push them back with our serves and make sure to create chaos on their side, allowing us to dig up as much as we could – the girls did just that.”
Regardless of which players were on the floor at any given time, the Wolves showed grit and determination.
“Everyone really filled their roles and adjusted when we needed them to,” Whitmore said. “La Conner had to really earn their points this time – we averaged 14.6 digs per set, which is big time against a team like that; I’m so proud of our tenacity.”
“From those digs and strong passing, we averaged 11 kills per set,” he added.
“And like I said before, I’m just so proud of the improvement and we played our best when our best was needed.”
The end of a season almost always means players are leaving, and Whitmore will look back fondly on this year’s veterans.
“There is just so much to say about our five outgoing seniors,” he said. “They have worked so incredibly hard with me to build the culture that we have now and I’m so grateful to them and their families.
“All five came up big last night but they have been coming up big for years now, and I am going to miss them like crazy.
“They leave a huge impact on our younger players and a tone that will help us continue to push and build.”
Wednesday stats:
Alita Blouin — 1 kill, 28 digs, 3 assists, 2 aces
Mia Farris — 7 kills, 1 dig
Maddie Georges — 1 kill, 12 digs, 52 assists, 8 aces, 1 block assist
Taygin Jump — 2 kills, 10 digs, 3 aces
Ryanne Knoblich — 14 kills, 10 digs, 1 ace, 1 block assist
Katie Marti — 2 digs, 1 ace
Madison McMillan — 5 kills, 9 digs, 3 aces
Grey Peabody — 19 kills, 1 dig, 2 block assists, 1 solo block
Jill Prince — 12 kills, 3 digs, 1 block assist
Lyla Stuurmans — 1 kill, 1 dig, 1 block assist
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