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A big cheer, as awards season begins!!

November 8, 2017 by David Svien

   Freshman Melia Welling was named Most Improved at Wednesday’s CHS cheer banquet. (Photo courtesy Michion Welling)

First in spirit, first to have their banquet.

The Coupeville High School cheer squad kicked off awards season Wednesday, handing out letters and certificates to cap its fall campaign.

First-year coaches (and Wolf cheer alumni) Emily Stevens and Amanda Jones lettered 19 cheerleaders, with three taking home additional awards.

Ashleigh Battaglia claimed the Coaches Awards, Melia Welling was tabbed as Most Improved and Kaley Grigsby was honored as Most Spirited.

Earning varsity letters:

Ashleigh Battaglia
Julie Bucio
Coral Caveness
Kayla Caudle
Maggie Crimmins
Kaley Grigsby
Gaby Halpin
Jesse Hester
Ja’Tarya Hoskins
Isabel Hucke
Mckenzie Meyer
Claire Mietus
Nanci Melendrez
Mira Mostafavinassab
Heather Nastali
Moira Reed
Mica Shipley
Emma Somes
Melia Welling

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Lil’ sprouts grow into big stars!!

November 7, 2017 by David Svien

   Current senior Payton Aparicio leads off a look at what this year’s volleyball team was up to in 2004, the last time Wolf spikers made it to the state tourney.

Senior Kyla Briscoe

Senior Mikayla Elfrank

   Assistant coach Ashley Herndon, then a high school senior.

Senior Hope Lodell

Sophomore Emma Mathusek

Senior Katrina McGranahan

Junior Ashley Menges

Freshman Chelsea Prescott

Senior Lauren Rose

Assistant coach Chris Smith

Junior Emma Smith

Sophomore Scout Smith

Sophomore Maya Toomey-Stout

Senior Allison Wenzel (left) and big sis Rachel.

   And head coach Cory Whitmore, back when he was tearing up the court as a 14-year-old.

A lot has changed in 13 years.

When Coupeville High School’s volleyball squad heads to Yakima Thursday, it’ll be the first time the Wolf spikers have made it to the state tourney since 2004.

Back then, Toni Crebbin was calling the shots on the sideline for CHS and all-timers like Taniel Lamb, Mindy Horr and Kirsty Croghan were roaming the floor, mixing thunderous spikes with silky sets and sizzlin’ service aces.

As the 2004 Wolves romped through a season in which they were ranked #1 in the state at one point, the next generation was quietly going about its own business.

Spread across Coupeville and several other towns (and states), the 13 girls and three coaches who comprise this year’s state team had no idea they would one day unite in the spotlight.

While they wait for the bus to gas up for the long trip East, let’s take a ramble down memory lane and see just what they were all up to back in those lazy, hazy days of 2004.

You know, when OutKast was singing “Hey Ya!” and I was busy at Videoville, trying to make people rent the criminally-underrated “13 Going on 30.”

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Get ya roster here!!

November 7, 2017 by David Svien

   Hawthorne Wolfe, here slicing to the hoop as a 7th grader, is back for a second season of middle school basketball. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

They’re 18 strong in the early going.

While players may still come and go, Coupeville Middle School boys basketball coaches Bob Martin and Dante Mitchell have a pretty good idea of what they’ll have to work with.

And what that is, is a fair amount of 8th graders (13) and a bare bones amount of 7th graders (just five).

Last year, it was the other way around, as the younger team was the well-stocked one.

With most of that crew staying with the game, Mitchell will have plenty of bodies to mix and match, while Martin is hustling to try and attract some more players to turn out.

The rosters as they stand through after day one of practice:

8th grade:

Lucious Binnings
Isaiah Bittner
Aiden Burdge
Brayden Coatney
Brawn Gadberry
Tony Garcia
Logan Martin
Caleb Meyer
Xavier Murdy
Grady Rickner
Cody Roberts
Damon Stadler
Hawthorne Wolfe

7th grade:

Dominic Coffman
Alex Murdy
Kevin Partida
Levi Pulliam
Alexander Wasik

Posted in Boys Basketball, Middle School | Tagged , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Survive and thrive!!

November 6, 2017 by David Svien

   Hot-serving Katrina McGranahan is one of seven seniors on this year’s state-bound Coupeville High School volleyball squad. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

   After missing her junior year with a leg injury, Kyla Briscoe returned to play a key role in the Wolves success.

Welcome to the Group of Death.

Coupeville’s first trip to the state volleyball tournament in 13 years comes with one small caveat — spikes are about to fly.

But, survive the beginning, and the finale could be sweet.

The 16-team, double-elimination tourney opens Friday with two matches for each team, and the Wolves companions are the deadliest to be found.

Coupeville’s block of four teams includes both remaining undefeated schools, including the defending state champs, who HAVEN’T LOST A SET THIS SEASON … and some rich, private school you all might remember named King’s.

The Wolves won at least one match in all four of their previous trips to the big dance, between 2001-2004.

To keep that going, though, they will have to play their best volleyball of the season.

The opening foe (3:15 PM Friday) is Castle Rock, which arrives bearing a 16-0 mark.

The Rockets were the regular-season champs of the six-team 1A Trico League, which also sends La Center to state.

Castle Rock captured the title at the District 4 tourney, with wins over King’s Way Christian and the aforementioned La Center, earning its 25th trip to state.

In their previous visits, the Rockets have emerged as state champs three times — 1987, 1993 and 2012. They were runner-ups in 1983, 2008 and 2011, as well.

Win or lose, Coupeville is guaranteed a second match Friday night, and that foe will either be former Cascade Conference rival King’s, or the hottest team in 1A currently, Lakeside (Nine Mile Falls).

The Knights, a longtime thorn in the side of the Wolves until CHS jumped to the Olympic League in 2014, are 15-2.

King’s only losses came to 2A Archbishop Thomas Murphy, a defeat it avenged late in the season, and fellow 1A power Lynden Christian.

That loss to the Lyncs kept the Knights from claiming a bi-district title, but they rebounded to drill Meridian to earn their 16th trip to the big dance.

Back-to-back state titles in 2008 and 2009 are the benchmark for King’s spiker program.

But while the Knights are undoubtedly top-drawer, they have a huge obstacle in front of them in Lakeside (Nine Mile Falls), which hails from Spokane.

After winning three straight state titles from 1999-2001, the Eagles captured their fourth championship in 2016, and are now back to take their 13th crack at the big dance.

Last year’s title win came against Lynden Christian, preventing the Lyncs from winning a third-straight championship.

While plowing through the eight-team 1A Northeast League, which also sends Freeman to state, Lakeside has been absolutely, positively perfect, winning all 48 sets it has played this season.

With Coupeville a tidy 13-3 itself, its four-team bracket carries a combined record of 60-5, a .923 winning percentage which far outweighs the other three groups.

Whidbey Island’s other state-bound team, South Whidbey, is joined by Charles Wright Academy, Chelan and Naches Valley, and their combined .761 winning percentage (54-17) is the lowest of any group of four.

The other two pods are 58-9 (.866) — La Center, Cascade, Kiona-Benton and Overlake — and 53-15 (.779) — Freeman, Lynden Christian, Bellevue Christian and Goldendale.

A breakdown of what’s coming this weekend:

What: 1A state volleyball tourney.

When: Friday and Saturday, Nov. 10-11

Where: Yakima Valley SunDome (1301 S Fair Ave)

Admission (all day/all tournament):

Adult — $11/$19
Student — $9/$15
Senior Citizen (62+) — $9/$15
Child (under 5) — Free

 

Team capsules:

 

Coupeville:

Season record: 13-3

League finish: #1 in 1A Olympic League

Sets W/L: 40-10

Coach: Cory Whitmore

Mascot: Wolves

 

Bellevue Christian:

Season record: 12-5

League finish: #2 in 1A Nisqually League

Sets W/L: 37-18

Coach: Jenna Bronson

Mascot: Vikings

 

Cascade:

Season record: 14-1

League finish: #1 in 1A Caribou Trail League

Sets W/L: 42-5

Coach: Marni McMahon

Mascot: Kodiaks

 

Castle Rock:

Season record: 16-0

League finish: #1 in 1A Trico League

Sets W/L: 48-9

Coach: Jeana Bayes

Mascot: Rockets

 

Charles Wright Academy:

Season record: 13-4

League finish: #1 in 1A Nisqually League

Sets W/L: 42-18

Coach: Mindy McGrath

Mascot: Tarriers

 

Chelan:

Season record: 12-4

League finish: #2 in 1A Caribou Trail League

Sets W/L: 39-13

Coach: Jenifer Rainville

Mascot: Mountain Goats

 

Freeman:

Season record: 14-3

League finish: #2 in 1A Northeast League

Sets W/L: 42-10

Coach: Eva Windlin-Jansen

Mascot: Scotties

 

Goldendale:

Season record: 12-5

League finish: #3 in 1A SCAC West

Sets W/L: 42-24

Coach: Jodi Bellamy

Mascot: Timberwolves

 

King’s:

Season record: 15-2

League finish: #1 (tie) in 1A/2A Cascade Conference

Sets W/L: 46-10

Coach: Jeff Fransen

Mascot: Knights

 

Kiona-Benton:

Season record: 15-2

League finish: #1 (tie) in 1A SCAC East

Sets W/L: 44-10

Coach: Jolene Calzadillas

Mascot: Bears

 

La Center:

Season record: 14-5

League finish: #2 in 1A Trico League

Sets W/L: 47-21

Coach: Cymany OBrien

Mascot: Wildcats

 

Lakeside (Nine Mile Falls):

Season record: 16-0

League finish: #1 in 1A Northeast League

Sets W/L: 48-0

Coach: Kara Moffatt

Mascot: Eagles

 

Lynden Christian:

Season record: 15-2

League finish: #3 in 1A/2A/3A Northwest Conference

Sets W/L: 49-12

Coach: Kim Grycel

Mascot: Lyncs

 

Naches Valley:

Season record: 14-4

League finish: #1 in 1A SCAC West

Sets W/L: 46-20

Coach: Sherri Partlow

Mascot: Rangers

 

Overlake:

Season record: 15-2

League finish: #1 in 1A Emerald City League

Sets W/L: 46-11

Coach: Justice Magraw

Mascot: Owls

 

South Whidbey:

Season record: 15-5

League finish: #3 in 1A/2A Cascade Conference

Sets W/L: 50-15

Coach: Mandy Jones

Mascot: Falcons

 

Bracket:

http://www.olympicleague.com/tournament.php?tournament_id=2451&sport=10

Posted in Volleyball | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment »

She’s back, and still kicking fanny!!

November 6, 2017 by David Svien

   One game into her sophomore season of college basketball and Makana Stone is already at the front of the pack. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

The season hasn’t officially started, and already Makana Stone is on fire.

The Coupeville High School grad kicked off her sophomore basketball campaign at Whitman College with a 13-point, eight-rebound performance Nov. 2 in an exhibition game against The Master’s (Calif.) University.

Paced by Stone, the Blues, who are coming off a run to the Elite Eight in last year’s NCAA D-III women’s tourney, rolled to a 72-47 victory.

While the win doesn’t officially count on Whitman’s win-loss record, it was a nice tune-up before the start of the regular season.

That’s Nov. 15, when the Blues, ranked #6 in preseason polls, play at Eastern Oregon in a non-conference game.

After that comes a pair of tournaments, one in Spokane and one in Walla Walla, as the season gets into full swing.

In the exhibition opener, Whitman gave time to all 14 players on its roster, but none shone brighter than Stone, who worked her way into the starting lineup midway through her freshman season.

She pumped in her game-high 13 points on 6 of 11 shooting from the field, tossing in a free throw to round out the effort.

Stone also dealt out two assists and made off with a steal to go with her eight rebounds, while putting in 24 minutes on the court.

Fellow returning players Emily Rommel (11 points, five rebounds) and Maegen Martin (10 points, nine boards) were strong as well, while freshman Kaelan Shamseldin netted 12 points, all off of three-balls.

Whitman was savage on the glass, out-rebounding its foes 50-30, while limiting the Mustangs to an ice-cold 23% shooting performance.

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