With 10 more kills Thursday, Jill Prince moved into first place in that stat category for Coupeville. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)
It was two matches in one.
Sets one and four were blowouts Thursday, sets two and three intense battles, but in the end it all went the way the Coupeville High School varsity volleyball squad wanted.
Rallying back strongly after a brief letdown, the Wolves knocked off visiting Darrington 25-16 25-23, 22-25, 25-10 in coach Cory Whitmore’s 90th match at the helm of the program.
The win lifts Coupeville to 8-1 in Northwest 2B/1B League action, 8-3 overall, and keeps it a game back of two-time defending state champ La Conner, which sits at 9-0, 12-0.
The Wolves and the Braves play the second of their two regular-season matches next Tuesday, Oct. 19 in Coupeville.
Thursday’s tango with Darrington, which entered play in fourth-place in the seven-school NWL, started off heavily in favor of the Wolves.
Team captain Maddie Georges ran off four straight points on her serve to open things, and CHS never trailed in the opening set.
Darrington did briefly knot things up at 5-5, but then freshman Lyla Stuurmans used her springy legs to climb to the heavens for a gorgeous tip winner, and sanity was restored.
Olivia Schaffeld, who had a very-strong evening, kept Darrington at bay with some crisp serves, while Stuurmans came back around to smash a winner off a sensational one-handed save by Alita Blouin.
Toss in Jill Prince and Grey Peabody stalking the net, Savina Wells unleashing bolts of lightning while serving, and Blouin crafting an extensive personal highlight reel, and things were poppin’ for the Wolves.
Her one-armed save was a crowd-pleaser, but Blouin’s best shot came when she slid across the floor, flicking a return upwards a moment before the ball skidded away.
Not only did she put the ball back into play, it plopped over the net, then evaded several Darrington players, giving Coupeville an unexpected point.
Ryanne Knoblich closed the first set with an explosive kill which drew a nod of approval from big bro Gavin, and Coupeville was on the move.
But Darrington had grit to spare, and bore down big-time in the next two sets.
The second frame featured 17 ties, the final one at 22-22, with Coupeville rallying from behind in the final moments to pull out the win.
Trailing 20-18, Georges flipped a ball sideways while hovering in the air, surprising the Loggers, who were expecting her to set the ball for one of Coupeville’s big hitters.
Unable to adjust, the Darrington spikers could only watch in silent frustration as the ball dropped in for a winner, sparking the comeback.
Maddie Georges doled out 28 assists on her home floor.
Wells and Schaffeld followed up George’s dynamite play with one of their own, combining to stuff a Logger kill, and it was looking like a straight-sets sweep was on the menu.
Not so fast, however.
Cue a third set which had just eight ties, with CHS seemingly in control, until the end.
Schaffeld and Stuurmans were painting the backline with kills, while Taygin Jump chipped in with a nice run on serve, but Darrington found a bit of a miracle to keep things interesting.
Down 21-17 after Wells let loose with a wicked slicer from the left side, the Loggers suddenly surged, closing the set on an 8-1 run.
While Darrington celebrated, Coupeville got right back down to business.
The Wolves could have deflated or pulled back within themselves after unexpectedly dropping the set.
Instead, they rolled.
Jump went off again at the service stripe, while Prince was everywhere, punishing the ball and the Loggers in equal measure as Coupeville blew out to a 15-5 lead and never slowed down.
The match ended with Schaffeld — who has had a huge impact for the Wolves during her sophomore season — raining down nasty serves, and Prince and Peabody working together for one final big block.
Watching his team bounce back so strongly pleased Coupeville coach Cory Whitmore.
“It was exciting to see us dig out of a couple slumps,” he said. “We responded really well after timeouts and between sets. That was excellent.
“We had a lot of energy and, when we needed it, we were able to build it back up.”
While he praised his entire team, Whitmore gave a special shout-out to Schaffeld and Prince, who have stepped up to become ultra-dependable players.
“Jill is a cerebral player who is really beginning to tap into her physical side, while Liv has always been a physical player who is really paying attention to the details now, settling in to hit her spots.”
Thursday stats:
Alita Blouin — 1 kill, 15 digs, 1 assist, 1 ace
Maddie Georges — 1 kill, 9 digs, 28 assists, 4 aces, 1 block assist
Taygin Jump — 2 digs, 4 aces
Ryanne Knoblich — 1 kill, 3 digs
Grey Peabody — 1 assist, 1 block assist
Jill Prince — 10 kills, 1 dig, 2 block assists
Olivia Schaffeld — 10 kills, 4 digs, 4 aces, 2 block assists
Lyla Stuurmans — 4 kills, 15 digs
Savina Wells — 8 kills, 2 digs, 6 aces, 2 block assists
Coupeville Sports 