Coupeville Sports

Special Olympics hoops stars dazzle

March 3, 2024 by David Svien

Team Whidbey is ready to rumble. (Photos courtesy Tiffany Wheeler Thompson)

Put a basketball in their hands, and they soar.

Two Whidbey Island hoops teams participated in the Special Olympics state championships in Wenatchee this weekend, with both nabbing top finishes.

South Whidbey Wind claimed silver after enduring a nail-biting triple-overtime affair, while Team Whidbey earned fourth place in their division.

“It was a long day for our athletes, but they made all of us so proud,” said Tiffany Wheeler Thompson.

South Whidbey Wind players sport their medals.

The 2024 Special Olympics State Winter Games ran from Mar. 1-3, with athletes competing in events such as alpine skiing, basketball, cheerleading, figure skating, snowboarding, and speed skating.

There were 495 athletes taking part in the basketball competition.

Spring sports kickoff:

While basketball has capped its season, Team Whidbey is moving on to swimming and track.

The events are open to ages eight and up, with no skill required.

To sign up, or for more, info contact Shari Mays at wispecialolympics@gmail.com.

Posted in Basketball | Tagged Basketball, Special Olympics, state championships, Wenatchee, Whidbey Island | Leave a Comment »

Coupeville beer biz back on tap

March 3, 2024 by David Svien

Mitch and Tami Aparicio

Same location, different name.

A little over a month after the Penn Cove Brewing Company shut down, ending an eight-year run, one of the two brothers behind that business has reopened its Coupeville storefront.

Mitch and Tami Aparicio launched the newly named Whidbey Tides & Taps Saturday, just in time for the Penn Cove Mussel Fest, in the building which had housed the Coupeville Taproom.

The business is located at 103 S. Main, across from the elementary school.

“Tami and I are super excited about bringing back the taproom we love and continuing to give back to the community that has done so much for us over the years,” Mitch Aparicio said in a statement on Facebook.

“Come by for a beer and say hi.”

His wife later chimed in, thanking all of their supporters.

“With the closing of Penn Cove Brewing Company, Mitch and I had some big decisions to make. We came to the realization that we were not ready to let go of the taproom adventure,” she said.

“We decided to open up a new business called Whidbey Tides & Taps and reopen the taproom to serve this community that we love!

“Thanks everyone for your overwhelming support and help getting ready for this!

“We have the most amazing employees, friends and customers that have all helped pull this together. We are beyond excited to keep serving everyone in this place we call home.”

Posted in Business profiles | Tagged beer, Mitch Aparicio, new businesses, Tami Aparicio, Whidbey Tides & Taps | Leave a Comment »

Shipley soars on Senior Night

March 3, 2024 by David Svien

Coupeville grad Mica Shipley (center) was honored Saturday during Senior Night at Eastern Washington University. (Photo property Bridget Hills)

Another milestone for Mica Shipley.

The Coupeville grad, now an NCAA D-I cheerleader, was honored Saturday during Eastern Washington University’s Senior Night for men’s basketball and cheer.

With Shipley and Co. providing the spirit and passion, the Eagles slipped past visiting Montana State 108-104 in overtime to get to 20-10 on the season.

EWU has one regular season game left against Sacramento State, before kicking off Big Sky tourney play.

During her time in Coupeville, Shipley, the most electrifying woman in sports entertainment, was a cheer captain and helped lead the Wolves back to being a competition squad after a seven-year gap.

They earned third place at the state meet during her junior season, before competing at nationals the next year.

The cheer supernova also modeled for Glitter Starz, a national leader in custom all-star uniforms, warm-ups, and other cheer essentials.

Posted in Cheer, Wolves in college | Tagged Cheer, CHS Wolves, Eastern Washington University, Mica Shipley, Senior Night | Leave a Comment »

High school hoops wraps its run

March 3, 2024 by David Svien

Coupeville’s Skylar Parker gets to the hoop against Neah Bay, which won a state title Saturday. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

The Northwest 2B/1B League kept it going until the final day.

While the conference didn’t claim any state basketball titles this winter, it did send six teams to the big dance and earned a second place showing in the 1B girls’ classification.

That trophy went to Mount Vernon Christian, which won three of four at state, falling only to top seeded, and defending champ, Neah Bay in the final Saturday night.

The Red Devils made it back-to-back titles with a 39-28 win.

Before that, MVC beat Wilbur-Creston-Keller 55-43, Sunnyside Christian 41-26, and Waterville-Mansfield 43-28.

The other five NWL teams to advance to state – the Coupeville boys, the Friday Harbor girls, the MVC boys, and the La Conner girls and boys – all lost in the first round this season.

State hoops champs for 2023-2024:

GIRLS:

4A – Camas

3A – Garfield

2A – Lynden

1A – Nooksack Valley

2B – Napavine

1B – Neah Bay

BOYS:

4A – Mount Si

3A – Eastside Catholic

2A – Lynden

1A – Zillah

2B – Colfax

1B – Wellpinit

Posted in Girls Basketball | Tagged girls basketball, Mount Vernon Christian, Neah Bay, Northwest League, state title | Leave a Comment »

Bottom of the net every time!

March 2, 2024 by David Svien

There’s a large support staff setting up the Wolf hoops stars for success. They include (left to right) Teagan Calkins, Jerry Helm, Bennett Richter, Brooke Crowder, and Inara Maund. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Use your time well.

Not all Coupeville Middle School basketball players have hit the hardwood the full six times this season.

Whether it’s injuries, or other schools not fielding a Level 3 team, some of the Wolves are operating with less game time on their resumes.

And yet, two of the top five scorers this season — Brooklyn Pope and Tenley Stuurmans — are just such players.

Which proves everyone scores at their own pace, and also that some players are just born to burn the nets down.

With that in mind, a look at where the Wolves stand, scoring-wise, with road trips to Sultan and South Whidbey left on the schedule:

Kennedy O’Neill – 49
Brooklyn Pope – 34
Willow Leedy-Bonifas – 30
Adie Maynes – 30
Tenley Stuurmans – 24
Lillian Ketterling – 18
Kaleigha Millison – 18
Sophia Batterman – 12
Amelia Crowder – 12
Cassandra Powers – 12
Sydney Van Dyke – 12
Emma Cushman – 11
Ari Cunningham – 10
Allison Powers – 8
Rhylin Price – 8
Ava Lucero – 5
Annaliese Powers – 5
Amaiya Curry – 4
Isabella de Souza Oliveria Mc Fetridge – 4
Olivia Hall – 4
Elizabeth Marshall – 4
Chelsi Stevens – 4
Cameron Van Dyke – 4
Tamsin Ward – 4
Sage Stavros – 3
Zayne Roos – 2