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“She has been leading with vision and heart”

May 8, 2026 by David Svien

Becky Cays

New year, new title.

Becky Cays, who was hired as Coupeville Middle School Principal and High School/Middle School Athletic Director before the start of the 2025-2026 school year, is getting an official promotion.

She will be the new High School/Middle School Principal, in a move announced Friday by Superintendent Shannon Leatherwood.

Cays new gig becomes official once approved by the school board.

She will be the third CHS Principal in as many years, as her predecessors, Geoff Kappes and Dan Berard, were both placed on administrative leave by Leatherwood, then later resigned.

Cays has been the acting principal for both schools since Berard’s departure.

“If your student attends either school, you may already know Mrs. Cays,” Leatherwood said in a community newsletter. “She has been a steady, caring, and highly capable presence in both buildings.

“Over the past several months, Mrs. Cays stepped forward to lead both campuses at the same time.

“During that period, she has built strong leadership teams, supported students through positive behavior frameworks, ensured every teacher received a formal evaluation, and kept both schools moving forward without missing a beat.

“She did not just fill a role. She has been leading with vision and heart.”

Prior to arriving in Coupeville, Cays, who is a Washington state native, most recently worked as the K-12 Assistant Principal at the International Schools Group in Jubail, Saudi Arabia.

Her education career has taken her to areas as diverse as Redmond and Indonesia.

With Cays officially becoming principal of two Coupeville schools, there are two other tweaks planned for the administration moving forward.

Former longtime Athletic Director Willie Smith, who has been covering the position since Cays stepped in for Berard, will work next year as a Teacher on Special Assignment and once again be the guiding hand behind Wolf athletics.

Meanwhile, counselor Lori Atlas will complete her principal internship, while adding additional leadership presence across both campuses.

“Together, this team ensures that both the middle school and the high school have visible, accessible, and caring adults who know your students by name,” Leatherwood said.

“We know stability matters to families. We know you want to see leadership that is present in the hallways, at events, and engaged with the life of the school.

“That is exactly what this team is built to deliver.”

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Wolf cheer legend nabs coaching gig

May 7, 2026 by David Svien

The most electrifying woman in sports entertainment is ready to pass her wisdom on to the next generation.

Former Wolf cheerleader Mica Shipley, who graduated from Coupeville High School in 2020, went on to fly high as an NCAA D-I cheerleader at Eastern Washington University.

Now she’s joining the coaching staff at Mead High School in Spokane, with Panther cheer welcoming her via Instagram Thursday night.

“Coach Mica comes to us as a former all-star athlete, competitive high school cheerleader, and Eastern WA Cheer alum!” began the social media shoutout.

“She is passionate about cheerleading and helping athletes reach their full potential.

“Coach Mica is looking forward to meeting all the athletes and building something everyone looks forward to being a part of!”

During her time at CHS, Shipley was a cheer captain and helped lead the Wolves back to being a competition squad after a seven-year gap.

She and her squad 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.

Mica during her own high school days. (Photo courtesy Tammy Akard)

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Ward, Wolf boys rule at league meet

May 7, 2026 by David Svien

CHS freshman Tamsin Ward, seen in the high jump, won a league title in the shot put. (Ana Paula Oliveira photo)

The crown is theirs.

Putting out a strong effort across the board Thursday, the Coupeville High School boys’ track and field stars stormed to a team title win at the Northwest 2B/1B League Championships.

Sparked by wins from Cyrus Sparacio (800, 1600), Davin Houston (High Jump), Marquette Cunningham (Triple Jump), and George Spear (3200), the Wolves outdueled five other schools to claim top honors in Mount Vernon.

CHS finished with 136.5 points, with La Conner (124) and Mount Vernon Christian (94.5) giving chase. Friday Harbor (86.5), Orcas Island (68.5), and Concrete (8) rounded out the field.

“The boys came together with a true team effort!” said Wolf coaches Bob Martin and Elizabeth Bitting. “Congratulations to the entire team on a well-earned accomplishment.

“Great job, boys!”

The champs. (Photo courtesy Bob Martin)

On the girl’s side of things, Coupeville got a win in the shot put from Tamsin Ward, finishing third in the team standings.

MVC racked up a meet-high 201 points to outduel La Conner (180), CHS (71), Friday Harbor (49), Orcas (16), and Concrete (12).

Overall, Coupeville racked up 30 PRs on the day, with the boys accounting for 21 of those.

The Wolves now have a little over a week to prep for their next event, the District 1/2 meet, which goes down in Cow Town Saturday, May 16.

That meet is a two-in-one affair, with Concrete and seven fellow 1B schools from District 2 competing against each other to qualify for Quad-Districts.

Meanwhile, Coupeville and league mates MVC, Orcas, Friday Harbor, and La Conner will be joined by Summit Atlas, with the top two finishers in each event qualifying for the 2B state meet.

Wyatt Fitch-Marron punches the gas pedal through the floor. (Aiden O’Neill photo)

 

Thursday’s results:

 

GIRLS:

100 — Isa Mc Fetridge (6th) 13.5 *PR*

200 — Mc Fetridge (6th) 28.5

400 — Olivia Hall (5th) 1:06.1 *PR*; Taylor Marrs (7th) 1:15.9

800 — Laken Simpson (4th) 2:45.8 *PR*; Mikayla Wagner (6th) 2:56.7 *PR*

1600 — Devon Wyman (5th) 6:31.6 *PR*

3200 — Wyman (2nd) 14:00.4 *PR*

100 Hurdles — Kennedy O’Neill (7th) 19.5 *PR*; Lexis Drake (11th) 22.2; Myra McDonald (12th) 22.3

300 Hurdles — O’Neill (7th) 58.2 *PR*; Wyman (10th) 1:06.2; Drake (11th) 1:11.2; McDonald (12th) 1:14.5

4 x 100 Relay — Arianna Cunningham, Drake, Mc Fetridge, Tamsin Ward (3rd) 54.2

4 x 200 Relay — A. Cunningham, Simpson, Drake, Mc Fetridge (2nd) 1:59.3

4 x 400 Relay — Hall, Marrs, Lillian Ketterling, Simpson (2nd) 4:45.1

Shot Put — Ward (1st) 31-09 *PR*

Discus — Ketterling (2nd) 77-10; Marrs (8th) 58-02

High Jump — Ward (5th) 4-06; Frankie Tenore (6th) 4-04

Pole Vault — Ketterling (2nd) 8-06

Long Jump — O’Neill (11th) 12-05.25; McDonald (16th) 10-01.75

Triple Jump — A. Cunningham (6th) 28-07

Arianna Cunningham pushes for the line. (Jackie Saia photo)

 

BOYS:

100 — Marquette Cunningham (6th) 11.8; Nathan Coxsey (9th) 12.1 *PR*; Liam Blas (10th) 12.2; Beckett Green (14th) 12.4; Sage Arends (20th) 12.9

200 — Green (6th) 24.6; Coxsey (10th) 25.0 *PR*; Richmond Bandong (17th) 26.6; Arends (19th) 27.1; Shilo Sandlin (20th) 27.7; Davin Houston (25th) 32.9

400 — George Spear (4th) 57.2; Brian Thompson (10th) 58.7; Will Tierney (11th) 58.8

800 — Cyrus Sparacio (1st) 2:13.7; Ossian Merkel (2nd) 2:22.9 *PR*; Johnathan Jacobsen (5th) 2:27.4 *PR*; Hunter Atteberry (9th) 2:43.9; Nolan Hunt (10th) 3:10.1 *PR*; Zach Blitch (11th) 3:17.1; Zachary Saho (13th) 3:50.0

1600 — Sparacio (1st) 4:43.5; Spear (2nd) 4:50.7 *PR*; Kenneth Jacobsen (4th) 5:16.2; Merkel (5th) 5:26.5 *PR*; Atteberry (9th) 5:48.5; Hunt (12th) 6:39.9 *PR*; Blitch (13th) 8:14.4

3200 — Spear (1st) 10:34.3 *PR*; Sparacio (2nd) 10:49.7; K. Jacobsen (3rd) 11:08.7 *PR*; Edmund Kunz (5th) 12:27.7

300 Hurdles — Edmund Wilson (3rd) 47.0 *PR*

4 x 100 Relay — M. Cunningham, Blas, Wyatt Fitch-Marron, Houston (3rd) 45.3

4 x 400 Relay — Wilson, Thompson, Fitch-Marron, Green (2nd) 3:45.2

Shot Put — Saho (3rd) 39-10.50; Khanor Jump (6th) 35-05.50; Blitch (18th) 26-06 *PR*

Discus — Blas (6th) 115-00 *PR*; Jump (8th) 106-05.50; Saho (11th) 98-01 *PR*; Tierney (21st) 67-06.50 *PR*; Sandlin (26th) 61-08.50; Blitch (28th) 56-02.50; J. Jacobsen (29th) 53-09.50

Javelin — Bandong (5th) 114-03; K. Jacobsen (12th) 99-00 *PR*; J. Jacobsen (13th) 98-08 *PR*; M. Cunningham (15th) 97-07 *PR*; Sandlin (20th) 72-10; Hunt (25th) 26-10

High Jump — Houston (1st) 6-00 *PR*; Fitch-Marron (3rd) 5-08; J. Jacobsen (4th) 5-02

Pole Vault — Kunz (4th) 7-06; Merkel (6th) 7-00 *PR*; Russell Miller (7th) 7-00

Long Jump — Wilson (6th) 16-08; Thompson (7th) 16-06.50

Triple Jump — M. Cunningham (1st) 40-09 *PR*

George Spear abides. (Melanie Wolfe photo)

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Playoff ticket eludes diamond men

May 7, 2026 by David Svien

Chase Anderson waits for his pitch. (Duke Kutz photo)

A second-half slump will prevent the Coupeville High School baseball squad from making the playoffs.

Once flying high at 7-2, the Wolves absorbed their fifth-straight loss, and seventh in their last nine games, falling 12-1 at Mount Vernon Christian Thursday night.

That defeat, combined with wins this week for Friday Harbor and Orcas Island, breaks a three-way tie for the final two postseason slots for 2B schools in the Northwest 2B/1B League.

Coupeville finishes at 7-5 in conference action, 9-9 overall, while MVC (12-0), Friday Harbor (8-4), and Orcas (8-4) are headed to the District 1/2 tourney.

The Wolves swept Friday Harbor early in the season, but a mid-season split with La Conner (3-8), in which both games were decided by a single run, looms large now.

CHS was still 7-1 in league play heading into its final two regular season series, only to be swept by both Orcas and MVC.

Thursday’s loss was a lot like the one Coupeville suffered Tuesday against the Hurricanes, as a tepid offense and way too many errors combined to make life tough for the Wolves.

CHS only put five runners on board across five innings Thursday, while committing seven errors on defense a game after racking up 10 miscues.

The first inning was a scoreless duel this time around, with Camden Glover stroking a two-out single in the top of the frame, while MVC eked out a walk in the bottom half.

But, after the Wolves went down 1-2-3 in the second, the ‘Canes struck for seven runs in the bottom of the second, scoring all of them after they had two outs.

Mount Vernon Christian only plunked a pair of singles in the inning, but four Wolf errors and three wild pitches conspired to allow the host team to stage an impressive rally.

The Hurricanes tacked on three more runs in the third to push the lead out to 10-0 before Coupeville scored its final run of the season in the fourth.

Chase Anderson belted a leadoff double to left, and three batters later fellow senior Aiden O’Neill laced an RBI single in his final high school at-bat.

But that was it for Steve Hilborn’s squad, as Trent Thule got plunked by a wayward pitch in the fifth to represent Coupeville’s final base runner of the campaign.

Anderson and Thule combined to rack up three strikeouts while pulling mound duty.

 

Thursday stats:

Chase Anderson — One double
Camden Glover — One single
Aiden O’Neill — One single
Trent Thule — Two walks

Camden Glover, here using his Jedi skills to freeze a ball in midair, played his final high school baseball game Thursday night. (Melanie Wolfe photo)

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CMS track stars make bold statement in Sultan

May 7, 2026 by David Svien

Les Queen has won all eight events he’s competed in this spring. (Julie Wheat photos)

New week, new success.

After opening the season at home, the Coupeville Middle School track team traveled to the hinterlands Wednesday, arriving in the wilds of Sultan to face the Turks and Northshore Christian Academy in a three-team royal rumble.

While there, the Wolves piled up wins and PRs, with 18 different athletes enjoying a first-place finish.

Leading the way for the second meet in a row was 7th grader Les Queen, once again claiming top honors in the 200, 400, discus, and 4 x 100 relay.

Two meets into his second season, Queen is more than halfway to the Wolf boys single-season win record of 13, set last year by then-7th grader Diesel Eck.

After that he would be chasing Lindsey Roberts, who won 19 times as an 8th grader in 2015, and Tamsin Ward, who went to the top of the podium 16 times as an 8th grader in 2025.

Hot on Queen’s heels Wednesday was 6th grader Juniper Dotson (1600, 100 Hurdles, 4 x 1) and 7th grader Jesse Kehoe (100, High Jump, Long Jump), both claiming three victories.

Across the board the Wolves, who had four other double event winners in Laurel Crowder, Henry Purdue, River Simpson, and Malachi Chapa impressed their coaches.

“Today’s results showed areas that students have been making strong efforts and those areas where even stronger efforts are needed,” said Jon Gabelein.

“While it was the second meet of the season, several students chose to compete in at least one event that they had never competed in before.

“This requires a great deal of confidence, and I was proud of them for being willing to stretch their comfort zone.”

On the long and winding return trip from Sultan, Gabelein polled some of the members of his crew for their thoughts as well.

“When I asked River Simpson about his favorite part of today’s adventure, his easy answer was the bus ride back as this is when the team stops for food,” the coach said.

“His more thoughtful response was running the 100-meter dash as this is when he gets to run his fastest race.

“Sawyer Rudat’s final answer was the bus ride as it is a great opportunity to enjoy some chill time with his teammates.”

It’ll be a shorter trip next time out, as Coupeville stays home for its next meet.

The Wolves host South Whidbey Wednesday, May 13, with action set to kick off at 3:30 PM at Mickey Clark Field.

Anna Powers leads the pack.

 

Wednesday results:

 

GIRLS:

 

8th grade:

100 — Ava Alford (4th) 15.40; Amira Annunciado (8th) 16.34; Claire Lachnit (11th) 16.40; Addison Jacobson (15th) 17.61 *PR*; Vicky Quiroga Rivera (17th) 18.16

200 — Zariyah Allen (2nd) 34.03 *PR*; Emma Green (6th) 34.53

400 — Z. Allen (3rd) 1:13.99 *PR*; Lachnit (5th) 1:28.65

1600 — Anna Powers (3rd) 6:32.13

100 Hurdles — Powers (3rd) 21.08; Kaleigha Millison (4th) 22.61

Shot Put — Jacobson (3rd) 25-04 *PR*; Millison (5th) 22-07.50 *PR*; Annunciado (8th) 19-04.50 *PR*; Alford (10th) 16-08.50

Discus — Lachnit (4th) 52-06.50; E. Green (5th) 51-09; Jacobson (6th) 46-06

High Jump — Z. Allen (1st) 4-05 *PR*; Millison (2nd) 3-10

Long Jump — Annunciado (5th) 10-09; Quiroga Rivera (13th) 7-02.50

 

6th/7th grade:

100 — Josilyn McColl (2nd) 14.68 *PR*; Laurel Crowder (3rd) 14.73 *PR*; Bella Sandlin (4th) 14.85 *PR*; Ava Clark (5th) 15.33 *PR*; Ella Holm (10th) 15.91; Mia Goers (11th) 15.93; Eden Weeks (14th) 16.28; Jasmine Allen (15th) 16.34 *PR*; Sophia Magdolen (16th) 16.40 *PR*; Ruby Folkestad (22nd) 16.92; Ava Black (24th) 16.99 *PR*; Evelyn Merino-Martinez (26th) 17.22; Daisy Leedy-Bonifas (27th) 17.38; Emma Roberts (29th) 17.46 *PR*; Reagan Green (30th) 17.48 *PR*; Dresden Rusch (31st) 17.55 *PR*; Dani Halsing (34th) 18.27 *PR*; Kolby Johnson (35th) 18.75 *PR*; Milly Somes (36th) 20.20

200 — Crowder (1st) 30.34 *PR*; Weeks (5th) 33.35 *PR*; Magdolen (6th) 34.23 *PR*; J. Allen (8th) 35.12 *PR*; Maja Govorcin-O’Connell (9th) 36.62 *PR*

400 — Sandlin (1st) 1:13.98 *PR*; Magdolen (4th) 1:18.36 *PR*; Merino-Martinez (7th) 1:28.17 *PR*

1600 — Juniper Dotson (1st) 6:28.44; Sarai Dangerfield (3rd) 6:56.88; Abby Hunt (5th) 7:15.01

100 Hurdles — Dotson (1st) 21.29; Black (10th) 23.45 *PR*; Leedy-Bonifas (12th) 23.91 *PR*

4 x 100 Relay — J. Allen, Leedy-Bonifas, Dotson, McColl (1st) 1:03.10; Hunt, R. Green, Holm, Goers (2nd) 1:05.22

Shot Put — Holm (2nd) 24-11 *PR*; Govorcin-O’Connell (4th) 22-03 *PR*; Weeks (6th) 19-05; K. Johnson (10th) 16-07 *PR*; Rusch (12th) 15-10 *PR*; Clark (13th) 15-06 *PR*; Roberts (15th) 15-03.50

Discus — McColl (4th) 46-10; Halsing (9th) 39-09

High Jump — Crowder (1st) 4-05

Long Jump — Dotson (2nd) 11-09; Sandlin (4th) 11-00; Leedy-Bonifas (6th) 10-04 *PR*; J. Allen (7th) 10-03; Goers (7th) 10-03; Folkestad (12th) 9-05 *PR*; Halsing (12th) 9-05; Magdolen (15th) 9-04; Merino-Martinez (17th) 8-09; Dangerfield (22nd) 8-01; Clark (22nd) 8-01 *PR*; Roberts (27th) 7-08; Black (29th) 7-06 *PR*; Somes (30th) 7-05 *PR*; K. Johnson (32nd) 7-00

Ready to zip around the oval.

 

BOYS:

 

8th grade:

100 — River Simpson (1st) 12.39 *PR*; Aiden Wheat (9th) 13.67 *PR*; Xander Beaman (10th) 13.75 *PR*; Diesel Eck (12th) 14.00 *PR*; Vincent Alguire (18th) 14.42 *PR*; Maverick Light (28th) 17.00 *PR*

200 — Simpson (1st) 25.80 *PR*; Jacob Lujan (4th) 31.23

400 — Malachi Chapa (1st) 1:00.32 *PR*

800 — Henry Purdue (1st) 2:25.91 *PR*; Maverick Walling (2nd) 2:41.75; Archer Schwarz (4th) 2:50.50

1600 — Purdue (1st) 5:23.75; Lincoln Wagner (2nd) 5:55.02; Schwarz (4th) 5:59.53

110 Hurdles — Lujan (3rd) 20.69 *PR*

Shot Put — Alguire (1st) 34-00.25; Eck (2nd) 33-00

Discus — Eck (1st) 100-10; Wagner (6th) 73-05; Light (13th) 50-03.50 *PR*; Sawyer Rudat (17th) 41-07 *PR*

High Jump — Chapa (1st) 5-06 *PR*; Beaman (1st) 5-06 *PR*; Alguire (3rd) 4-10; Wheat (3rd) 4-10 *PR*; Purdue (6th) 4-08

Long Jump — Chapa (2nd) 18-04 *PR*; Simpson (4th) 15-08; Wagner (8th) 13-10; Schwarz (11th) 13-06 *PR*; Rudat (12th) 13-02 *PR*; Walling (13th) 12-11.50; Lujan (15th) 12-05

 

6th/7th grade:

100 — Jesse Kehoe (1st) 13.21 *PR*; Liam Stoner (2nd) 13.81; Logan Dees (4th) 14.31 *PR*; Henry Tierney (6th) 14.87 *PR*; Shiloh Johnson (9th) 15.76 *PR*; LJ Schultz (13th) 16.50 *PR*; Jackson Coxsey (18th) 18.19 *PR*

200 — Les Queen (1st) 27.66 *PR*; Stoner (2nd) 28.80 *PR*; Dees (3rd) 31.18 *PR*; Coxsey (9th) 43.50

400 — Queen (1st) NO TIME LISTED

800 — Miles Abram (1st) 3:03.24 *PR*

1600 — Abram (2nd) 6:28.41

4 x 100 Relay — Queen, Dees, Alton Hansen, Stoner (1st) 54.87

Shot Put — Coxsey (5th) 15-10 *PR*

Discus — Queen (1st) 113-05; Tierney (3rd) 70-08.50 *PR*; S. Johnson (5th) 40-10 *PR*

High Jump — Kehoe (1st) 4-10; S. Johnson (3rd) 4-02 *PR*

Long Jump — Kehoe (1st) 16-02; Stoner (2nd) 14-03 *PR*; Dees (4th) 12-06; Tierney (6th) 11-11; Schultz (9th) 11-02 *PR*

Flying through the air with the greatest of ease.

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