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Archive for the ‘Volleyball’ Category

Prairie legend morphs into top-notch educator

Posted in Volleyball, tagged , , , , on May 8, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville grad McKenzie Bailey is now a teacher and volleyball coach in Eastern Washington. (Photos courtesy Bailey)

Bailey and her undefeated Morgan Middle School squad.

She’s gone from delivering spikes to delivering pre-game speeches.

Coupeville grad, former volleyball and tennis star, and eternal Photo Bomb Queen McKenzie Bailey is now a teacher and the coach of an undefeated spiker squad.

After getting her college work done at Central Washington University, Bailey landed a job teaching 8th grade science at Morgan Middle School in Ellensburg.

Along with dealing with all the classroom issues raised by living in the Age of Coronavirus, she’s been coaching the school’s 7th grade volleyball team and led them to an undefeated campaign.

“I’m so proud of the progress my players made in the four short weeks we played together!,” Bailey said. “Also, how the heck did I coach an undefeated season my first season?!”

It’s been a busy time for the prairie legend, as she was also accepted into the STEM Leadership Masters Program at CWU, which she starts this summer.

“Somehow I’m still going, but I would be lying if I said I didn’t have a count down to the last day of school,” Bailey said. “I love my job, I love my students, and I’m still in shock that I get to do this every day.”

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Wolves rumble with the big dogs

Posted in Volleyball, tagged , , , , on May 8, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Kylie Chernikoff was one of four Wolf senior spikers honored Friday night. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

No fear.

After the pandemic forced approximately 237 changes to Senior Night plans, the Coupeville High School varsity volleyball squad finally was able to give its four 12th graders their moment in the spotlight Friday night.

But, once the festivities were done, cold reality awaited, in the form of a third(!) meeting this season with two-time defending state champ La Conner.

The Braves are a smooth-running wrecking machine, here to ruin your evening with a series of nasty spikes and balls scraped off the floor at the last second, and they haven’t lost a league match in a decade-plus.

And yet, as fearsome as La Conner can be, and as transcendent as their star slugger, sophomore Ellie Marble, is when she’s delivering volcanic lasers from all angles, Coupeville didn’t blink.

The Wolves did eventually lose, falling 25-20, 25-13, 25-20, but they played the Braves as strongly as anyone has during a season in which La Conner has gone 9-0, winning all 27 sets played.

Coupeville is 5-0 against other teams, and has a chance to make it 6-0 when they face Orcas Island in Saturday’s season finale.

Led by seniors Kylie Chernikoff, Maddie Vondrak, Jaimee Masters, and Chelsea Prescott, the Wolves hit the floor Friday like a team ready to make some headlines.

CHS bolted out to a 4-1 lead, punctuated by Chernikoff stuffing a shot at the net, and there were seven ties in the opening set.

Vondrak, the mighty masher with the world’s most-pleasant disposition, had the play of the night, soaring high into the heavens, where she met Marble in solo combat.

Not only did David and Terri’s daughter hold her own against La Conner’s ultimate weapon, but Maddie soundly rejected the incoming spike, sending it right back in her foe’s face for an emphatic “No, ma’am, not now, not ever!”

Toss in a handful of sweet, slicing spikes from Prescott and a gorgeous running tip for a winner from sophomore sensation Jill Prince, and the Wolves were knocking on the door of ending La Conner’s flawless run.

It wasn’t to be, however, as CHS eventually fell, even while holding off two set points.

The middle set was a little more of a letdown, as La Conner jumped on the Wolves quickly and never wavered.

One play stands out, however.

The Braves made a sensational save on a ball seemingly headed for the stands, keeping a rally alive even as Wolf fans had already started to (prematurely) celebrate.

But then Prescott erupted into the air and hit the ball hard enough to cut it in half, spraying a winner right down the heart of the court with enough fury La Conner had no chance at spectacular save #2.

Cue the celebration again.

The night’s final set featured 10 ties, the latest coming at 18-18, though once again La Conner reached down late, found a slightly-different gear and did whatever was necessary to pull away.

Coupeville sophomores Maddie Georges, Lucy Tenore, and Alita Blouin, the latter playing through the pain of a back injury, showcased the grit of the next gen stars, while junior Abby Mulholland ripped a couple nice serves to keep the Braves on their heels.

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Fight to the final spike

Posted in Volleyball, tagged , , , , on May 7, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Gwen Gustafson is part of a talented group of Coupeville High School JV volleyball spikers. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Quality, top to bottom.

La Conner High School is a titan in the world of 2B volleyball for a reason – longtime coach Suzanne Marble and her assistants have built a dynasty one step at a time.

The varsity program has won back-to-back state titles and hasn’t dropped a league match in a decade-plus.

But don’t sleep on the La Conner JV, because the young Braves are also undefeated this season, intent on impressing the coaches who can open the door to the next level.

Friday night, those spikers took another step to future success, holding off a Coupeville squad which has a fair amount of talent of its own.

Winning 25-19, 25-14, 25-20, the La Conner JV improves to 9-0 on the season, while dropping the Wolves to 5-3.

Coupeville, which wraps its season Saturday at home against Orcas Island, has essentially played two seasons in one.

The Wolves, under first-year coach Ashley Menges, are 0-3 against La Conner, and 5-0 against everyone else from the Northwest 2B/1B League.

Even in a loss, though, Coupeville pushed the Braves and made them fight for their points.

Case in point, the opening set, where the Wolves rallied from a 14-7 deficit to roar all the way back to an 18-18 tie.

The comeback began with a winner ripped down the left side of the floor by Maya Lucero, before a strong service run from Allison Nastali really fired things up.

Grey Peabody, Olivia Schaffeld, and Ryanne Knoblich all came up with big hustle plays, before Lucero unleashed her wicked power one more time, making the knees of even the hardiest of her foes tremble.

Unfortunately, once they were back even, the Wolves stumbled a bit, and La Conner seized control back, closing the set on a 7-1 tear.

Other than a nasty service ace from Allie Lucero and a winner off the fingertips of Issabel Johnson, much of the second set was pretty painful for Coupeville.

Issabel Johnson rains pain on her foes.

Down 17-3, the Wolves found a spark, however, as Knoblich elevated and terrorized, and things changed for the better.

Schaffeld, Peabody, and Gwen Gustafson — who reached over her head to uncork a winner, while falling backwards — started pounding the snot out of the ball, and CHS eventually held off six set points before succumbing.

While the win had been decided at that point, the third set, even with nothing but pride riding on it, was the most-competitive frame.

Both teams took turns going on runs, with the score fluctuating wildly.

A 4-1 Coupeville lead became a 12-6 deficit, then a 17-14 lead, before La Conner closed on an 11-3 run to claim the sweep.

Schaffeld put together a strong set, mixing big hits with nimble tips, while Skylar Parker and Jordyn Rogers used their time on the floor to showcase their heart and hustle.

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Wolves spike Hurricanes

Posted in Volleyball, tagged , , , , on May 5, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Maddie Georges netted 37 assists Tuesday, as Coupeville’s varsity spikers won on the road. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Focused and in control.

As they prepare for a third rumble with two-time defending state champ La Conner, the Coupeville High School varsity volleyball squad was in fine form Tuesday night.

Taking care of host Mount Vernon Christian 25-21, 25-16, 21-25, 25-14, the Wolves improve to 5-2 on the season and reclaim sole possession of second-place in the Northwest 2B/1B League.

Next up for CHS is a Senior Night rumble with La Conner (7-0) Friday, then a season-closing bout with Orcas Island (3-6) Saturday.

While both matches are home affairs, no fans will be allowed at the second one, as Orcas requires that during the Age of Coronavirus.

The tussle with the Vikings will be broadcast on Facebook Live.

While La Conner is the spiker program everyone measures themselves against, Coupeville didn’t look past MVC.

The first time these two schools clashed on the volleyball court this season, the Wolves had to rally to pull out a nail-biting five-set thriller.

This time around, the action was equally intense, but a little more one-sided.

“I was excited to see that we played much more in control than last time we faced off with MVC,” said Coupeville coach Cory Whitmore.

“That game was a turning point for us to focus on our attacking form and our readiness on defense, and both were much more improved than our last outing against them.”

While the Hurricanes lost, they also came hard, something Whitmore was pleased to witness.

“It was fun to see that MVC was also improved, meaning that we had to earn our points,” he said. “We had a bit of slump in the third set, going back and forth with them before they crept ahead at the end.

“The girls then had to generate the energy as a team in order to break free in the fourth set,” Whitmore added.

“After dropping the third set, you want to see your team take the game back in control and close it in four, which is what they did and I’m especially proud of them for that.”

A key to Coupeville’s success was its smooth work on offense, with sophomore Maddie Georges doling out 37 of her team’s 40 assists.

“Overall, our passing was strong and we were in very comfortable attacking situations,” Whitmore said. “I was really impressed with Maddie’s setting decisions and delivery.

“She averaged 9.25 assists per set, which is a strong distribution.”

Once Georges flipped the ball into play, the Wolf mighty mashers took advantage, with the senior triple threat of Chelsea Prescott (17 kills), Kylie Chernikoff (12), and Maddie Vondrak (10) combining to rain down holy terror on the Hurricanes.

Vondrak was a beast at the net, also picking up a solo block and four block assists, while Chernikoff and Prescott tallied double-doubles.

Chernikoff added 10 digs and three service aces to go with her knee-buckling kills, with Prescott going off for 15 digs and five scorchin’ aces.

Ten Wolves saw floor time in the win, with all of them slappin’ down nice numbers in the stat book.

Sophomore Lucy Tenore “came in and served very well at critical times,” ripping off five aces and “carrying us through to the end of the match with a very strong serving run to close it out.”

Tenore added five digs, three kills, and two block assists, while Georges also picked up four digs, three block assists, and two aces.

Alita Blouin (seven digs), Jill Prince (two digs, a block assist), Abby Mulholland (two digs, an ace) Jaimee Masters (a dig), and Ryanne Knoblich (a dig) also kept the stat-keepers hoppin’.

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You’ve been served

Posted in Volleyball, tagged , , , , , , on May 5, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Jordyn Rogers and the Coupeville JV spikers smashed Mount Vernon Christian Tuesday night. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Maya Lucero and twin sister Allie were lethal at the service stripe. And in the middle of the floor. And at the net. So, basically everywhere.

Their service game? Impeccable.

Throwing down a case of whupass with power and precision Tuesday, the Coupeville High School JV volleyball squad obliterated host Mount Vernon Christian.

Combining for 26 service aces, the Wolves gave the Hurricanes little chance to put the ball into play, then ended things viciously when they did.

The final score, a somewhat eye-popping 25-6, 25-1, 25-8, left CHS coach Ashley Menges flying high.

“Last night went great!,” she said. “Allie (Lucero) basically served the whole first set, and Maya (Lucero) basically served the whole second set!”

The Battlin’ Lucero Twins were all over the stat sheet, with Allie recording 13 aces and 20 assists, while Maya notched six kills and five aces.

All seven Wolves to see action Tuesday night were on fire, with Ryanne Knoblich smashing a team-high seven kills.

She added three digs to her work, while Jordyn Rogers (four kills, five aces, two digs) and Grey Peabody (three kills, one assist, one block) chipped in with solid efforts.

Gwen Gustafson (six digs, two aces, a kill) and Olivia Schaffeld (four kills) also sparkled for the Wolves, who sit at 5-2 on the season with two matches to play.

Coupeville hosts La Conner Friday, then closes the season at home against Orcas Island Saturday afternoon.

That second match is a restricted one, with no fans allowed, as Orcas is requiring that this season.

CHS will stream JV and varsity matches on Facebook Live that day.

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