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He’s still standing

May 15, 2023 by David Svien

The man abides. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

He’s not going anywhere. Not just yet.

Amidst a swirl of possible budget cuts as area schools deal with financial shortfalls, one proposal — to remove Willie Smith as Coupeville High School/Middle School Athletic Director and hand his duties to an assistant principal — has been discarded.

In an email sent out Monday, Coupeville Schools Superintendent Steve King said things have changed in the past two weeks.

After learning about the most recent teacher resignation and with our current Athletic Director, Willie Smith, being willing to serve as AD with one less release or prep period, we are excited to announce that Mr. Smith will continue as our 2023-2024 athletic director.

Release or prep periods have the most significant financial implication for our current model, as a secondary teacher’s teaching period costs approximately $11,000 – $20,000, depending on the teacher’s experience level.

We are thankful that Mr. Smith is willing to continue his work as AD with two release periods instead of three.

Smith, who is the President of the Northwest 2B/1B League, has been a teacher, coach, and AD — for varying lengths of time — since arriving in Coupeville from the wilds of Sequim in the mid ’90s.

Under his leadership, the 2022-2023 school year has been one of the strongest in school history for Wolf athletics.

Every high school team, varsity and JV, earned a team GPA of 3.1 or better, with three sports — girls’ cross country, boys’ track, and girls’ tennis — winning state academic titles.

The Wolves sent football and girls’ cross country teams to the state championships in the fall, with baseball slated to play at state this weekend.

Coupeville also qualified members of its boys’ cross country and track and field teams for the big dance, with girls’ tennis players still in the hunt for state berths as well.

When the proposal to cut Smith’s AD duties was announced, public response was swift and loudly in opposition to the move.

Numerous other athletic directors spoke out against the possible change in articles which ran here on Coupeville Sports, and you could sum it all up in the words of Friday Harbor AD Brock Hauck.

“It’s a terrible idea.”

And now, it’s an idea no more.

Posted in Hands Off My Willie | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment »

Sandahl sisters show off big brains

May 15, 2023 by David Svien

Coupeville’s Sophie Sandahl (back, middle) and lil’ sis Lucy (front, right), livin’ that rowing life. (Photo courtesy Jeannie Sandahl)

Smart in high school, smart in college.

Coupeville sisters Sophie and Lucy Sandahl, now attending Seattle Pacific University, were both tabbed Monday for the Great Northwest Athletic Conference All-Academic women’s rowing team.

SPU landed 10 athletes on the squad, which requires a 3.2 or better GPA.

Crew members must be on the roster for the entire season and are not eligible for the award until their second season with their university.

Sophie, a senior studying Art History and Visual Studies, notched a 3.52 GPA to earn her second appearance on the All-Academic team.

Her younger sister, a junior pursuing a degree in Physiology, came in at 3.28 and is honored by the GNAC for the first time.

Lucy has been the coxswain for SPU’s Varsity +4 boat this season, while Sophie has rowed in both +4 and +8 boats.

The Falcons, who competed at the GNAC Championships this past weekend, will find out Tuesday if they make the cut for the season-ending NCAA D-II Championships.

After moving to Whidbey Island from South Carolina, the Sandahl sisters attended local schools and were top scholar athletes.

Lucy graduated from Coupeville High School after playing volleyball and track and field for the Wolves, while Sophie graduated from Oak Harbor High School, where she swam for the Wildcats.

Posted in Rowing | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

CHS tennis, track earn academic state titles

May 15, 2023 by David Svien

Wolf netters, successful on the court and in the classroom. (Lucy Tenore photo)

Two in one season, three for the school year.

Coupeville High School earned academic state titles in girls’ tennis and boys’ track and field Monday, as the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association announced honorees for spring sports.

That follows on the heels of Wolf girls’ cross country also topping all 2B schools back in the fall.

Coupeville’s netters, coached by Ken Stange, posted a 3.872 GPA for the season, with 10 players on the squad.

Meanwhile, the school’s 29 male track stars combined to finish with a team GPA of 3.714, with head coach Bob Martin making sure classroom success has matched the triumphs in the arena.

“They’re having themselves quite a season,” Martin said.

“These athletes just continue to amaze us,” added CHS girls’ track coach Elizabeth Bitting.

The Wolf tennis crew won a share of the Northwest 2B/1B League title on the courts this spring and is sending six players on to the bi-district tourney this Friday, where they will play for state tourney berths.

Coupeville’s male track stars won league and bi-district titles and have 12 athletes headed to Yakima May 25-27 for the state meet.

 

To see all the academic state champs for spring sports, pop over to:

Click to access 2023%20Spring%20Academic%20State%20Champions.pdf

Posted in Girls Tennis, Track | Tagged , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Zip to the tape

May 15, 2023 by David Svien

Coupeville sophomore Lyla Stuurmans wants all your medals. (Photo courtesy Sarah Stuurmans)

One meet left to go, and it’s the big one.

Coming off of a sweep of the team titles at Saturday’s District 1/2 Track and Field Championships, Coupeville High School athletes now have their eyes set firmly on the state meet in Yakima.

Counting alternates for two relay teams, CHS coaches expect to pack 22 Wolves into a school bus, with the big dance playing out May 25-27.

With its body of work fully displayed, Coupeville boasts a fair number of athletes in the top 10 among students from 2B schools.

Though, thanks to the cutthroat nature of high school track and field, a couple of those top 10 performances didn’t translate to state meet berths for the Wolves or athletes from rival teams.

Only the winner of each event at Bi-Districts advanced, and several duels Saturday featured multiple contenders throw down stellar performances at the exact same time.

One example is the 1600, where CHS senior Mitchell Hall PR’d and delivered the 9th best performance in 2B this season, while Northwest Christian’s Asher Ingram hit the tape less than a second ahead of him.

You have to earn the right to advance as well, which is why Wolf junior Nick Guay is not state-bound in the high jump, despite having the 6th best mark in the event.

He didn’t compete at the bi-district meet, which left the door open for teammate Dominic Coffman (9th best in 2B) to claim a title, and a trip to state.

Dominic Coffman jumps to victory. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Or there’s the case of Coupeville senior Taygin Jump, who is #3 in 2B in the hammer throw.

Unfortunately, the event is not part of the state meet, denying her a chance to let it rip on the big stage.

And, in one final quirk, the CHS girls 4 x 400 relay team is ranked #4 in 2B, but when the Wolves won a bi-district title and punched their ticket to state Saturday, they did so with a different, and slightly slower, lineup.

 

Where CHS athletes rank in 2B through May 15, with (*) indicating an impending trip to the state meet:

 

GIRLS:

100 — Monroe Myles (8th) 13.28 (*)

200 — Myles (6th) 27.17 (*)

400 — Lyla Stuurmans (7th) 1:03.60 (*)

100 Hurdles — Claire Mayne (8th) 17.41 (*)

4 x 100 Relay — Myles, Ryanne Knoblich, Issabel Johnson, Mayne (8th) 53.72

4 x 400 Relay — Mayne, Aleera Kent, Carly Burt, Stuurmans (4th) 4:27.11 (*)

Shot Put — Carolyn Lhamon (4th) 35-00 (*)

High Jump — Knoblich (3rd) 5-00 (*)

Hammer Throw — Taygin Jump (3rd) 56-08

 

BOYS:

400 — Aidan Wilson (8th) 53.08

800 — Wilson (2nd) 2:01.22 (*)

1600 — Mitchell Hall (9th) 4:40.16

110 Hurdles — Tate Wyman (8th) 16.90

4 x 100 Relay — Reily Araceley, Wyman, Wilson, Dominic Coffman (2nd) 45.02 (*)

4 x 400 Relay — Preston Epp, Hall, Wyman, Wilson (10th) 3:39.69

High Jump — Guay (6th) 6-00; Dominic Coffman (9th) 5-10 (*)

Long Jump — Alex Murdy (6th) 20-03 (*)

Triple Jump — Wilson (7th) 41-05.50 (*)

Posted in Track | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments »

Boost this, boost that

May 15, 2023 by David Svien

“Stop. You had me at free pizza.” (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Show your support, snag some pizza.

The Coupeville Booster Club is holding its annual membership meeting this Thursday, May 18 — the 43rd anniversary of Mt. St. Helen’s blowing its top — at 6:00 PM in the CHS commons.

Free pizza and drinks will be provided, with the focus on informing folks of what the club does, while offering newcomers a chance to join the organization.

The booster club provides financial support to Coupeville’s middle and high school sports programs, through things such as equipment purchases, scholarships, and athlete appreciation festivities.

Six $1,000 scholarships are annually awarded to graduating CHS senior athletes, while current athletes are helped with sports fees, roses for Senior Night events, and varsity letters.

The club has also aided the school’s athletic department with purchases including weight room equipment, a portable race clock for track and field, scoreboards, batting cages, and the painting of the high school gym.

The Wall of Fame in the CHS gym, which highlights league, district, and state accomplishments for Wolf teams dating back decades, became a reality thanks to a financial donation from the club.

The boosters are always looking for a few good volunteers to help the cause, and you can have your choice of committees coordinating action on the Penn Cove Mussel Festival, the club’s crab feed fundraiser, and the Coupeville Arts and Crafts Festival, among others.

Or help out with doling out varsity letters, getting spiffy new duds for Wolf coaches, doing PR through Facebook and Instagram, or a billion other things.

All in the service of “providing additional opportunities for our athletes that wouldn’t exist otherwise.”

If you have questions before the meeting, reach out to the club at coupevillebc@gmail.com.

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