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Posts Tagged ‘Abby Mulholland’

One team, to rule the Island

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on January 21, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Freshman Anya Leavell tossed in eight points Monday as Coupeville’s JV bushwhacked Oak Harbor. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Our freshmen are better than yours.

Completing a 4-0 run against Whidbey Island rivals this season, the Coupeville High School JV girls basketball squad drilled visiting Oak Harbor’s C-Team 45-16 Monday night.

The win, the fourth in the last five games for the Wolves, lifts them to 8-6 on the year.

Coupeville’s JV, which featured eight freshmen among its nine active players Monday, swept home-and-away series from both 1A North Sound Conference rival South Whidbey and 3A Oak Harbor, granting them the possibly made-up, but still spiffy title of “Island Champs.”

And none of those four games were remotely close, either.

Facing a withering Wolf defense, Oak Harbor spent much of the first half Monday just fighting to get out of its back-court.

The Wildcats didn’t get a shot up that connected with either the rim or the backboard until seven and a half minutes into the game.

At that point, OHHS already trailed 16-0, en route to an eventual 24-0 deficit midway through the second quarter, and Coupeville was clicking on all cylinders.

Bucket after bucket was set up by crisp passes, as the Wolves picked apart Oak Harbor’s interior defense with ease.

The game opened on a layup from Izzy Wells, with Coupeville’s lone active sophomore, Mollie Bailey, providing the sweet dish, as she came off the dribble and flipped the pass right onto Wells waiting fingertips.

Less than two seconds later, having yanked an in-bounds pass away from the intended target, Ja’Kenya Hoskins crashed hard to the hoop, slapping home the ball with a satisfying thunk.

After that the buckets came bam-bam-bam, many set-up by steals or Wolves wrestling 50/50 balls away from their rivals and immediately crashing towards the hoop.

Wells had the hottest hand in the opening frame, popping for eight, but Coupeville spread its 18-0 surge among five shooters.

Six of Coupeville’s nine buckets in the first quarter came courtesy layups, two on sideline jumpers by Wells and Anya Leavell, and one on a power move down in the paint from Abby Mulholland.

The heir to the Keefe basketball legacy (go look it up, it’s pretty dang impressive), Mulholland posted up, caught an entry pass, then knocked her defender backwards with a subtle hip shot before draining the turnaround jumper.

The second quarter was a showcase for Audrianna Shaw, who kicked in three buckets as CHS went up 24-0 before setting for a 28-2 lead at the break.

Showing she’s dangerous from anywhere on the floor, Shaw drilled a pull-up jumper, off a kick-out from Leavell, then rolled around the corner to bank home a shot before capping things with a burst right up the middle, splitting two defenders and hitting a runner.

Mulholland, who scored in every quarter, paced the Wolves in the third, but fellow frosh Alana Mihill earned the biggest curtain call.

The scrappy cross country veteran, who had been zigging and zagging on defense all night, frustrating the Wildcat shooters, suddenly pulled up and drained a three-ball from the top of the arc late in the third frame.

Her teammates, JV and varsity, went bonkers for Mihill’s surprise bomb, her second bucket and first trey of the season.

Up in the crow’s nest, varsity players Avalon Renninger, Tia Wurzrainer, and Scout Smith, shooting game film, got so excited they came close to knocking each other down into the stands.

Perhaps taking some inspiration from Mihill, Oak Harbor, which had struggled mightily on offense through three quarters, hitting just one field goal and two free throws, picked things up down the stretch.

The Wildcats managed to put together an 8-0 run during the fourth quarter, topped double-digits scoring for the night, and “won” the final frame 12-6.

A huge part of that was Coupeville having long past taken its press off, but the Wolf defenders did pull off a couple of strong plays late, while being careful not to be so aggressive as to be jerks.

Morgan Stevens hauled down her fair share of rebounds, scrapping hard in the paint, while Lily Leedy made off with several steals, turning one into a breakaway layup.

As the ball settled through the net, Leedy turned, and flashing a smile at her family in the stands, charged back down court, ready to harass any and all ball-handlers foolish enough to dribble her way.

While CHS coach Amy King was missing four players with injuries (Kylie Van Velkinburgh, Ivy Leedy, Kylie Chernikoff and Kiara Contreras), she got big contributions from everyone able to take the floor.

Wells led the scoring attack with 12 points, while Mulholland was coming up hot in her rear-view mirror with 10 of her own.

After that, the Wolves got eight from Leavell, six from Shaw, three from Mihill, and a bucket apiece from Hoskins, Bailey, and Leedy.

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Burn the joint down!!

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on December 8, 2018| Leave a Comment »

Kiara Contreras banked home a bucket and dealt out three assists Saturday as the Coupeville JV girls romped to a road win. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

They torched the gym.

Metaphorically! METAPHORICALLY!!

They’re still a little touchy around Orcas High School, after the JV gym almost LITERALLY burnt down Friday, so we need to be clear with our words.

Saturday, a day after someone caught things in the nick of time as the electrical doodads in the score clock went haywire, the Coupeville JV girls basketball squad showed up to burn things down in a safer way.

“The nets were on fire – baskets dropping everywhere!” said very-happy CHS coach Amy King.

Led by a season-high offensive explosion from freshman Abby Mulholland — perhaps channeling uncle Randy Keefe, the third-highest scorer in 102 years of Wolf boys varsity basketball — Coupeville romped to a 31-18 win.

The non-conference victory lifts the young guns to 1-3 and sent them back to the bus with an extra skip in their step.

Make that two or three extra skips for their coach.

“There was a patience on offense we haven’t seen yet and a fight on defense thru the entire game,” King said.

“Ja’Kenya (Hoskins) was calling for the ball in the post, Mollie (Bailey) really sparked things on offense, Anya (Leavell) had a number of steals at the top of the key creating fast breaks and Kylie (Van Velkinburgh) shut down the Orcas offense and had some really nice shots.

“It was exciting to see the girls put together their most complete game so far.”

After the brush with fiery fury from above, the game was played with a make-shift clock on the scorekeeper’s table and no shot clock.

Not that Coupeville had any trouble getting their shots in the air quickly and efficiently.

“The girls came out strong and got stronger as the game progressed,” King said.

The Wolves methodically stretched the lead, taking it from two points after one quarter to five at the half, then using a 7-1 surge in the third to ice things.

Mulholland was front and center for the Wolf attack, stepping up to drain a high school career high of 11 points.

“The girls really shot well,” King said. “Abby had an awesome night, receiving pass after pass and putting the ball up and over.

“Our game was controlled on offense, moving the ball well, shortening the passes to minimize opportunities for steals,” she added. “We actually set up and ran a few different offenses and got great open shots.”

While the Wolves spread out the offensive love, with six other players joining Mulholland in the scoring column, it was freshman point guard Kiara Contreras who played the role of the straw who stirred the drink.

“Kiara always adds an electricity to the court on both offense and defense,” King said. “She gives that type of pressure that other teams don’t like playing against, and she has been moving the ball really well on offense, feeding her teammates.”

While the offense was clicking, the defense was in lock-down mode.

During a second quarter time out, frosh Izzy Wells asked King if they could switch to a press, and her coach agreed with the move, which forced Orcas to hurry up and make multiple errors.

With nine players in uniform, the Wolves used everyone, and everyone made an impact, especially on D.

“Ja’Kenya worked well in the middle with Izzy and Kylie on either side,” King said. “Up top, Mollie and Anya shut down any chance for long shots.

“On defense the girls talked, shut down their drives and started anticipating passes that resulted in a lot of steals,” she added. “Alana (Mihill) and Morgan (Stevens) rounded out the team, providing tough defense whenever they were in and working hard on offense.”

Mulholland’s 11 points led the way, while Leavell kicked in six and Bailey popped for five. Wells (4), Contreras (2), Hoskins (2), and Van Velkinburgh (1) also scored.

The stat sheet was topped by Wells (11 rebounds), Leavell (seven steals), Contreras (three assists) and the slap-happy duo of Bailey and Hoskins, who collected a blocked shot apiece.

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Snow hoops for you, girls!!

Posted in Girls Basketball, Middle School, tagged , , , , , on February 22, 2018| Leave a Comment »

   Abby Mulholland and her CMS teammates are stuck at home Thursday, after snow postponed a planned trip to Port Angeles. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Mother Nature strikes again.

With snow covering the ground Thursday, the Coupeville Middle School girls basketball teams will not travel to Port Angeles to face Stevens.

The move, announced mere moments ago by Coupeville Athletic Director Willie Smith, was made based on both “weather and road conditions.”

A makeup date will be determined later.

Barring any more blizzards, the Wolves return to the court next Monday, Feb. 26, when they travel to Sequim.

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Never stop believin’!!

Posted in Middle School, Volleyball, tagged , , , , on October 26, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Angelina Gebhard and the Coupeville Middle School 8th grade JV volleyball squad rallied for an epic win Thursday afternoon. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

As comebacks go, this one was pretty dang incredible.

Rallying multiple times Thursday, the Coupeville Middle School 8th grade JV volleyball squad stormed back from an enormous first set deficit, then liked success so much it promptly rolled to a straight-sets win over visiting Sequim.

The 25-23, 26-24, 15-11 victory, in which the Wolves trailed from the first serve to the next-to-last point of the opening set, was the highlight on a day when the other three CMS teams fell to their big school rivals.

And, if you win, you get first priority in the story.

8th grade JV:

Things were not going especially well.

The JV squad, which had trailed from the first point of the match, fell behind, then watched its deficit steadily grow.

A few strong serves from Samantha Streitler aside, the Wolves were in trouble, trailing 16-8 and lacking any sort of spark.

Or maybe CMS coach Casie Greve and her team were just pulling a long con, cause things flipped and they flipped fast.

Morgan Stevens turned out to be the catalyst, and the finisher.

A pair of aces started the comeback, then Amanda Thomas, Abby Mulholland and Angelina Gebhard caught fire at the line, while Sequim suddenly went ice cold, missing four consecutive serves.

Even with all that, the Wolves didn’t take the lead until Stevens dropped in two straight aces to push CMS up 24-23.

With all the air rushing out of the bodies of the Sequim players, Stevens twirled the ball one more time, launched it skyward and sent a ball across the net which hit the receiver in the arm and bounced away for set point.

At which point the Wolves erupted like they had won the state championship, screaming loudly enough to wake up any cows still grazing out in nearby fields.

Buoyed by the improbable, heart-stopping comeback, the JV dropped the hammer after that.

Stevens continued to be on fire at the service line, while Mulholland and Chloe LaRue put together torrid runs of their own.

In between the service winners, Ella Colwell dropped in a sweet tip for a winner, while LaRue came storming down the sideline to save a runaway ball and redirect it back over the net and through a mob of Sequim players.

8th grade varsity:

The Wolves started in cruise control, then the wheels fell off the car.

After opening with a 25-16 win in the first set, Coupeville suffered through a lengthy dry spell on serve — at one point five of six servers put their first ball into the net during the second set — and things turned sour quickly.

Sequim, which benefited more from CMS errors than anything it accomplished for itself, captured the final two sets 25-18, 15-6.

Part of the visitors success on this day came from something which may trip up its players down the road.

Coupeville coaches preach overhand serving, if at all possible, while Sequim had a staggering amount of girls lofting the ball underhand.

Thursday, that worked, as it meant the visitors put just about everything into play. But it also means a lengthier adjustment for those players down the road as they try and rise through the ranks.

When CMS players hit high school, they will already be prepared to serve at that level, which is huge.

From Izzy Wells, who cracked off a nasty ace which hit the court and burrowed five feet down (part of a string of eight straight winners during the good-times first set), to Jaelyn Crebbin, who frequently unleashes bombs, one loss doesn’t tell the full tale of their potential.

During that opening set, Coupeville also benefited from strong play by Abby Meyers, Noelle Daigneault and Eryn Wood, who closed out the set with a high-flying tip which elicited a scream of approval from her dad, Robert, camped in the bleachers.

While things didn’t go as smoothly after that, the Wolves still got some big plays, such as Audrianna Shaw painting the back line with a spike.

7th grade varsity:

The match was closer than the score might sound, as the Wolves, led by the serving of Kaielle Bepler and Alita Blouin and the hustle of Jill Prince and Gwen Gustafson, fought hard in a 25-8, 25-15, 25-15 loss.

Capping their first season as co-coaches of the young guns, Sarah Lyngra and Kimberly Bepler were thrilled with the progress they saw from their often very raw players.

“Everyone worked really hard, today and all season,” Lyngra said.

Bepler agreed, saying “We saw a big development of skills from the girls as we went from match to match.”

7th grade JV:

The scores were much closer in this one, a barn-burner where a serve here, a spike there, could have flipped the match.

Sequim escaped with a 25-20, 25-18, 25-23 win, but not before Wolves Cypress Socha (nine successful serves), Vivian Farris (7) and Hayley Fiedler (5) sliced ‘n diced the visitors while at the service stripe.

“Cypress was awesome today,” Lyngra said. “Her best super, duper day of the season!”

Both coaches were happy to see their player’s continued growth in getting “three hits and over,” pointing to one rally where there were five such combinations before the point was finished.

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Knifed by Forks!!

Posted in Middle School, Volleyball, tagged , , , , on October 2, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Eryn Wood, seen here in an earlier match, had several strong serves Monday while facing off with Forks. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Angelina Gebhard is a threat at the service line or at the net.

Jordyn Rogers and the Wolf 7th graders are a team on the rise.

One win, and a lot of fight.

Facing off with feisty Forks at home Monday, the Coupeville Middle School volleyball squads came close, but only netted one victory in four matches — and that was an unofficial “win.”

8th grade varsity:

A titanic battle and the closest match of the afternoon.

Other than a poor end to the opening set, Coupeville waged war with Forks point for point, losing by the narrowest of margins at 25-16, 21-25, 25-23.

The hero was the young woman with the loudest fan club, one Abby Mulholland.

Her serves provided 13 of Coupeville’s 48 points over the course of the final two sets, including a run of nine straight winners which completely turned the match around in the middle set.

Mulholland’s first run at the service stripe came midway through the second set, with CMS trailing 10-7 and down a set.

As her fan club, led by a boisterous Moose Moran and Lyle Wells, hooted and hollered, she dropped an ace in front of a diving Forks player on her first serve, and the spark was lit.

Mulholland continued to pepper the Spartans, with two more aces and several balls returned straight backwards, then she got some help from Audrianna Shaw.

Stalking the net, she twice found the perfect tip, dropping balls between defenders for crucial points.

The first came on a ball where Shaw reached back over her head, while the second was a classic elevate and put the ball away moment.

The duo were back at it when it came time to close out the set in favor of Coupeville.

Angelina Gebhard whacked a winner off a Forks player’s arm to push CMS ahead 22-21, then Mulholland returned to the service stripe.

Firing off three more winners to seal the deal, she got an assist from Shaw, who nailed a nice bump for a winner on the set-clincher.

The third and deciding set was a war of attrition, with the teams trading the lead down the stretch.

At one point, Jaelynn Crebbin made a sweet save on a ball which looked like a sure-thing Forks winner, diving and popping the ball up into the air where Mulholland dropped the hammer with a skillful poke.

Coupeville was up by as many as three points, then down by four, before putting together a rally started by Kylie Van Velkinburgh dropping a winner into a microscopic gap.

The two squads were tied seven times in the final set, including as late as 23-23.

It wasn’t to be, though, as errors at the very end tripped up CMS — a tip which caught net and refused to get up and over and miscommunication between teammates which let the final ball drop in.

The opening set, which featured strong serving from Izzy Wells, was very similar to the final set.

There were seven ties, but then at 16-16, things fell apart for Coupeville as a very-effective Forks server went on a nine-point tear to close things out.

8th grade JV:

OK, while I was in the gym for both 8th grade matches, I quickly lost track of things during this one while busy interacting with the future of Wolf sports, irrepressible two-year-old Maysen Van Velkinburgh.

Turns out what I missed was CMS winning the first set 27-25, then getting a forfeit in the second set while trailing 13-7. Forks had to flee to the ferry, handing the Wolves the victory.

What I did see was some strong serving from Ella Colwell, Chloe LaRue and Morgan Stevens and big hustle from Lita Woolett, Anya Leavell and Samantha Streitler.

Other than that … next match I will be more alert.

Unless Maysen is doing back handsprings or wants to spend more time nibbling on my notebook. Then I can’t promise anything.

7th grade varsity:

Coupeville captured the first set 25-20, then fell 25-12 and 25-18 in the next two.

The Wolves opened strongly at the service stripe — Harlee Ausman was 9-of-10 and Kaielle Bepler 4-of-4 in the opening set — but tailed off quickly after that.

“Our serving in the second two sets wasn’t so good,” said CMS coach Sarah Lyngra. “Receiving was also an area which needs work, but we were able to get eight three-hits a side during the last set.

“We are recording the times we get three hits a side as something to work toward improving over the course of the season.”

7th grade JV:

Beaten at the service stripe, the Wolves absorbed a 25-11, 25-17, 25-15 loss.

“It was a server’s battle and our serves weren’t making the grade,” Lyngra said.

Coupeville, which hit on 69% of its serves in its last match, skidded to just 21% Monday, and that was a killer.

Lyngra offered praise to Maya Lucero, who was a perfect 4-for-4 on serve in the first set, and Brynn Schmid, who delivered some “nice passing.”

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