Coupeville Sports

Late start, fast finish

September 30, 2023 by David Svien

Wolves (l to r) Aleksia Jump, Noelle Western, and Reagan Callahan are ready to fly. (Elizabeth Bitting photos)

They outran the dying light.

Competing in one of the few cross country events to take place in the late afternoon and evening, Coupeville High School harriers recorded strong times Saturday in Marysville.

The event was the 16th annual Twilight XC Invitational, which drew 90 teams from four states, and a bunch of unattached runners, to the Cedarcrest Golf Course.

“It was a great invite,” said Coupeville coach Elizabeth Bitting. “So glad we were finally able to make it!

“In the past Homecoming has conflicted with it, but not this year!”

There were 10 races, with the first one starting at 2:45 PM and the final one not sending runners flying until 7:00.

Hence, the name of the meet.

Coupeville sent 17 runners to the line, with all six varsity boys cracking 20 minutes on the 5,000-meter course.

The sub-20 minute club.

Sophomore Noelle Western had the top Wolf finish, claiming 53rd in a field of 267 in her royal rumble.

“They all ran amazing!” Bitting said.

“I know I always say I am proud of them, but I really, really am.

“All their hard work they are putting in is coming to fruition.”

The Wolves head back to practice with the start of the school week, returning to competition next Saturday, Oct. 7, when they travel to Arlington for the Hole in the Wall XC Invitational.

Ari Armstrong (left) and Erica McGrath get a photo op before their race.

Saturday results:

GIRLS:

Freshman/Sophomores:

Noelle Western (53rd) 24:03.6
Aleksia Jump (188th) 28:21.5
Reagan Callahan (243rd) 33:52.6

Juniors/Seniors:

Ari Armstrong (127th) 27:00.7
Erica McGrath (174th) 29:11.0

BOYS:

Varsity:

Landon Roberts (154th) 19:05.8
George Spear (158th) 19:08.3
Carson Field (167th) 19:18.8
Ezekiel Allen (201st) 19:51.7
Thomas Strelow (204th) 19:54.3
Kenneth Jacobsen (205th) 19:56.9

JV:

Freshman/Sophomores:

Axel Marshall (269th) 21:43.5
Zach Blitch (477th) 31:16.6

Juniors/Seniors:

Nicholas Wasik (217th) 21:26.8
Santi Ojeda (229th) 21:39.6
Preston Howard (246th) 21:58.3
Damy Giacobbe (416th) 30:00.00

Foreign exchange student Santi Ojeda enjoys his American experience.

Posted in Cross Country | Tagged CHS Wolves, cross country, George Spear, Marysville, Noelle Western, Twilight Invite | Leave a Comment »

Get butter, cause they’re on a roll

September 29, 2023 by David Svien

Nick Guay dropped a note-perfect mix tape during pregame warmups, then scored his 13th career goal in a big Coupeville win. (Carly Burt photo)

Flawless? No. Thrilling? Yes.

The Coupeville High School soccer squad might not have delivered its best performance of the season Friday, but the Wolf booters still had way too much firepower for visiting Cedar Park Christian-Lynnwood.

Raining down goals under Friday Night Lights and using a suffocating defense to allow goaltender Hurlee Bronec plenty of rest time, CHS strolled to a crowd-pleasing 4-0 win.

The victory, coming in both team’s Northwest 2B/1B League opener, lifts Coupeville to 1-0 in conference play, 4-1 overall.

The core of a first-place team. (Jackie Saia photo)

Now, the Wolves will carry a four-game winning streak on the road next week, traveling to Mount Vernon Christian for a matchup with a dangerous Hurricanes squad.

Coupeville will need to clean up its passing to hang with MVC, a perennial state tourney contender, but the goal-scoring, enthusiasm, and team camaraderie is already present.

The Wolves have proven quite adept at bashing away and scoring goals this season, and that was on display Friday night.

Cole White broke open a scoreless tie in the game’s 21st minute, peppering the CPC goalie with a laser, before fellow senior Nick Guay popped in a shot seven minutes later.

Around the two first-half scores, the Wolves had numerous other chances which just missed.

Preston Epp and Guay slapped shots which drifted just a bit at the end, sliding past the net, while Ayden Wyman was robbed by a nice save from the visiting netminder.

Awarded a penalty kick after being knocked around in a scrum, Wyman, who tallied 13 goals in two years with the Wolf girls’ team, came dangerously close to becoming the first CHS female to score in a boys’ game.

While she was (barely) denied, Coupeville picked up another two goals after the halftime break.

White punched in his second score of the night 15 minutes into the second half, before Preston Epp went on a rampage, beating the CPC goalie on a breakaway to cap the offensive output.

Facing off with a defense led by Hank Milnes and Andrew Williams, Cedar Park had few chances to score.

Jedi master Hurlee Bronec compels the ball to stop using just his mind. (Jackie Saia photo)

CPC’s best try came courtesy a penalty kick, but the shooter went wide right, perhaps chilled by the sight of Bronec coldly staring him down.

Or the gathered Wolf fans screaming and thumping the metal seats, creating a wall of sound which rippled across the prairie.

With his two scores Friday, White moves into a tie with Guay for the season lead, as both gunners have tallied five apiece.

Now with 13 career goals, Guay jumps a rung, and is tied with Wolf grad Aidan Wilson for #6 all-time, while White has nine celebrations.

That ties him with pitch legend Jon Chittim for #12.

Preston Epp, just a junior, has two goals on the season, and seven for his career, as he also continues to move up the list.

He already owns the family record, edging older brother Cameron, who scored four times during his own strong prep career.

#7 has scored seven times in his CHS career. (Jackie Saia photo)

Posted in soccer | Tagged Cedar Park Christian, CHS Wolves, Friday Night Lights, Nick Guay, Northwest League, Soccer | Leave a Comment »

Playoff hopes dinged, not erased

September 29, 2023 by David Svien

Freshman Davin Houston caught his first varsity TD pass Friday night. (Andrew Williams photo)

The path is perilous, but the road hasn’t washed out.

Coupeville’s goals of winning back-to-back Northwest 2B/1B League football titles, and returning to the state playoffs, took a ding Friday night, that’s true.

But nothing has been decided yet.

Falling 37-26 on Friday Harbor, the Wolves slip a game behind the Wolverines in the standings with two conference tilts left on the schedule.

Friday Harbor sits at 2-0 in league, 3-1 overall, while Coupeville is 1-1, 1-4.

La Conner brings up the rear in the three-way battle for 2B supremacy, at 0-2, 0-4.

The Wolves have non-conference rumbles the next two weeks, travelling to Bellingham, then hosting Forks for Homecoming.

After that comes a road trip to La Conner Oct. 20 and Senior Night Oct. 27 against Friday Harbor.

The Braves and Wolverines play for a second time Oct. 13.

Win out in their two league games, and Coupeville can earn at least a share of the league title and force a tiebreaker with Friday Harbor to decide which NWL team advances to the 2B state tourney.

To do so, the Wolves will need to slow down the Wolverines ground attack, which tore them up in round one.

CHS sophomore Aiden O’Neill punched in a touchdown — his team-leading fifth of the season — off of a short pass from Logan Downes, but Coupeville found itself staring at a 27-7 deficit midway through the third quarter.

Downes strafed Friday Harbor for three more TD’s through the air in the second half.

The first two went to sophomore Chase Anderson and the final one landed in the arms of fab frosh Davin Houston with 14 seconds to play.

Chase Anderson hauled in two scoring bombs from Wolf quarterback Logan Downes. (Bailey Thule photo)

Unfortunately, Friday Harbor had an answer at every turn, whether it was Victor Velasquez cranking a long field goal or Chris Gustafson and associates tearing off huge chunks of yardage on the ground.

Trying to play catch-up, Coupeville went for two-point conversions after its final two scores but failed on both attempts.

The Wolves defense stood tall near the end, holding on a fourth-and-three, only to see Friday Harbor return the favor on the very next possession.

With his four touchdown passes, Downes has 12 on the season, and becomes the third CHS quarterback to crack 30 scoring lobs for his career.

He has 32, trailing just his basketball coach, Brad Sherman (33), and older brother Hunter Downes (35), who holds the school record.

Anderson accounted for 14 of Coupeville’s 26 points Friday, with two touchdowns and two PAT’s.

That moves him atop the season scoring chart, where he currently edges O’Neill 31-30.

And last, but not least, Davin Houston snagging a pass and bolting past a defender for six means all three of Daniel and Alia’s sons have been involved in a touchdown while repping the red and black.

With the score, the young gun joins a football fraternity which includes older siblings Dawson and Daylon.

A side note:

Dear sweet baby Jesus, if Friday Harbor can sell a sweetfully sinful Mac ‘n Cheese hamburger in their snack bar, why can’t Coupeville?

Posted in Football | Tagged CHS Wolves, first place showdown, football, Friday Harbor, Logan Downes, Northwest League | Leave a Comment »

Hall burns up college trails

September 29, 2023 by David Svien

Mitchell Hall (back, second from left) with his family. (Photo courtesy Maria Summers)

Always in motion, morning, noon, or night.

Coupeville grad Mitchell Hall continues to tear up the trails in college, and he was back in action Friday night in Terra Haute, Indiana.

Competing in the Nike Cross Country Town Twilight at the Laverne Gibson Championship Course, the former Wolf covered 8K in 29 minutes, 42.7 seconds.

That was just off Hall’s college PR of 29:10.2, as the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology finished second at the 12-team meet.

He’s run in three meets as a freshman, and returns to action Friday, Oct. 13 when Rose-Hulman travels to Wilmington College in Ohio for the Jenna Strong Fall Classic.

Hall, a standout student and track and cross country athlete during his time at CHS, is studying physics and mathematics.

Posted in Cross Country, Wolves in college | Tagged CHS Wolves, cross country, Indiana, Mitchell Hall, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | Leave a Comment »