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They blazed the trail!!

Posted in Girls Basketball, Hall o' Fame, tagged , , , , on July 30, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Coupeville High School girls hoops tipped off in 1974. (Photos courtesy Martha Folsom)

The ’74-’75 squad, which had to go to Fort Casey to practice.

   The high scoring ’86-’87 Wolves, the first CHS girls hoops team to make the playoffs. (Photo courtesy Sherry Roberts)

They were the pioneers.

Today, 43 seasons into its existence, the Coupeville High School girls basketball program is flying high.

The current Wolves have won three straight Olympic League titles (while going 27-0 against conference rivals), and the program has produced numerous big-time stars and hung several state tourney banners over the years.

But all of that success had to start somewhere, and today we’re here to honor two squads which made everything possible.

As we swing open the doors to the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame, we welcome the 1974-1975 and 1986-1987 Wolf girls hoops teams.

After this, you’ll find them hanging out up at the top of the blog, under the Legends tab.

Why those teams?

Because the ’74-’75 squad was the first modern-day team in school history and the ’86-’87 sharpshooters were the first to ever make the playoffs.

With Title IX having shaken things up (finally) in 1972, CHS began to open up opportunities to female athletes.

The school, which already had a strong basketball tradition on the boys side of the court, launched its girls program in 1974 … and promptly sent the players down the road.

While the boys hoops stars practiced in the same gym in which they played their home games, the Wolf girls trekked to Fort Casey for their workouts.

“No heat and the out-of-bounds lines were the walls!,” remembers Martha Folsom.

It wasn’t until 1977 that the Wolf girls finally got a full share of the home gym for practices, but the early road trips didn’t keep players from showing up, as the first squad boasted a full 12-player varsity roster.

While I’m tracking down the history of CHS girls basketball, the ’74-’75 team is still hidden in the shadows a bit.

The Whidbey News-Times elected to not write a single word about that season, and it was only with year two — and the arrival of a new sports writer — that things changed.

So, stat-wise, I haven’t been able to find much yet. But the hunt goes on.

We do have photos and a roster, though, thanks to a school yearbook kept by Folsom.

By the time the ’86-’87 team took the court, the program was more than a decade old and things were starting to take shape.

No Wolf girl topped 150 points in a season until Kristan Hurlburt went off for 263 in 1981-1982.

Two years later Judy Marti set a new mark, pouring in 312 points during her senior season.

Enter the ’86-’87 squad, which scored like no Wolf girls team before it, with two players, Terry Perkins (314) and Marlene Grasser (307) joining Marti in the 300-point club.

Tina Barker (274) just missed making it a trio, while Sarah Powell (141) and Aimee Messner (88) were also scoring threats for a deep, balanced team.

Led by head coach Phyllis Textor, the Wolves finished 15-8 overall, 11-5 in league play, coming within a single win of making it all the way to state in the program’s playoff debut.

The CHS girls finally cracked that barrier in 1998, advancing to the big dance with Willie Smith coaching, before capturing the program’s first state tourney win in 2000.

After that came three state banners (a sixth-place and two eight-place finishes) during Greg Oldham’s tenure, and the Wolf girls have gone back to state as recently as 2016 under David King.

There can be a solid argument made that girls basketball is the most consistently successful sports program at CHS over the past two decades.

But that all started with the athletes we honor today, the ones who broke the playing barrier and the ones who broke the postseason barrier.

So welcome to our little digital shrine.

Inducted together, as teams.

1974-1975 squad:

Brenda Belcher
Suzanne Enders
Martha Folsom
Eileen Hanley
Tammie Hardie
Ann Kahler
Debbie Snyder
Tracy Snyder
Teresa Taylor
Jill Whitney
Janie Wilson
Jean Wyatt

1986-1987 squad:

Tina Barker
Sally Biskovich
Sherry Bonacci
Trudy Eaton
Carol Estes
Marlene Grasser
Aimee Messner
Cheryl Pangburn
Terry Perkins
Sarah Powell

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Falcon ace soars to success!!

Posted in Boys Basketball, Boys Soccer, Boys Tennis, tagged , , , , , , on July 30, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Like his siblings before him, Kody Newman made a big splash at the state tennis tourney.

You know their name, cause athletic success is their game.

Few, if any, Whidbey Island families have had the kind of sustained excellence that Mike and Pam Newman’s children have brought to South Whidbey High School.

Jenny, Caitie, Riley, Lindsey, Hayley, Carlie and Kody have combined to win four state tennis titles, pour thousands of points through the basketball hoop, tear up the soccer pitch and generally be the gold standard for Falcon Nation.

While his older siblings left big shoes to fill, Kody, who will be a junior at SWHS this fall, has stepped right up.

Right out of the gate he made a splash at the state tennis tourney, finishing fourth in 1A as a freshman, winning three of four matches at the big dance.

As a sophomore hoops star, he torched Coupeville for a game-high 21, burying five treys.

For his next act, though, he’s going to mix things up a bit.

Newman, who’s played tennis, basketball and soccer since hitting high school, is headed to the baseball diamond next spring.

And, in a move sure to send shock waves through the net community his family has ruled, he may also switch up fall sports.

“I haven’t decided if I’m doing tennis again,” Newman said. “Or trying something new and play football.”

A talented natural athlete who lives for competition (“my life is sports,” he said with a laugh), Kody draws big rewards from his efforts.

“With sports I can always forget about my problems,” Newman said. “It’s just me and the ball, everything else is gone.

“I’m not thinking about my grades or drama around school, I’m thinking about why that jump shot didn’t go in, or how I can improve on bunting in baseball,” he added. “It’s very relaxing and can always make me happy!”

While he enjoys all his activities, if he had to choose one, the siren call of the hardwood is hard to ignore.

“My favorite sport is basketball,” Newman said. “I grew up playing with my siblings and it was a way we could all connect.

“I would rebound for my brother and sisters and they’d do the same so we could all improve.”

Having that chance to work on his skill-set, to take what genetics have given him and fine-tune his strengths while shoring up any (minor) weaknesses, drives Newman.

“I think that my desire to always get better and being open to constructive criticism is my best attribute,” he said. “I love getting feedback from people to always improve.

“I’d love to work on getting my vertical higher, because, with being shorter, it’s hard to get rebounds or block shots.”

As he’s progressed in all of his sports, Newman has had a string of coaches who have made an impact on him, both as an athlete and person.

He reels off an impressive list — “Mike Washington, Travis Tornga, Henry Pope, Ernie Merino, Tom and Karyle Kramer, Cj Baker and Josh Coleman” — then adds praise for others, as well.

“All the other coaches I’ve had, including Little League and Parks and Rec, and, of course, all my teammates,” Newman said. “Especially Lewis Pope for always teaching me moves and always being supportive!”

And don’t forget about his biggest fans, who have given him legends to aim for, and plenty of support as he finds his own path to success.

“Most importantly, my siblings and family for coming to all my sporting events and pushing me to do better.”

Newman has his eyes set on playing college ball, but his immediate future revolves around helping the Falcons fly high while competing against King’s and Archbishop Thomas Murphy in the always-tough 1A/2A Cascade Conference.

“I hope to make the playoffs again for basketball and hopefully help the baseball team go back to state,” he said.

In the few moments when he’s not living the athletic life, Newman, who wants to be a fire fighter, enjoys his science classes and spending time with family.

“I like spending time at the beach wake boarding with my brother, or playing beach volleyball with my sister or going to the pool with my girl friend,” he said.

While sports and life may take him away from his home in the future, the southern part of the Island, where he has grown up and grown into a star, will always be special.

“I love South Whidbey because everyone is kind to each other and it’s just an all round great community to be in.”

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Take a moment for Marie!!

Posted in Basketball, Hall o' Fame, tagged , , , , on July 28, 2017| 3 Comments »

   Long before she had four kids, all of whom became CHS athletic stars, Marie (Grasser) Bagby was a rebounding machine. (Megan Hansen photo)

Marie Bagby is one of the most genuinely nice people you will ever meet.

It’s a trait she shared with her sister, Marlene Grasser, and one which filtered down into all four of her children.

But we’re here to talk about the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame, and we’re here to discuss not Marie’s sweet nature, but her fire and drive on the basketball court.

That’s what carried her to great success as the first true modern-day girls basketball superstar at CHS, and it’s why she is being inducted (finally) into our little digital mecca.

After this, if you pop up to the top of the blog and look under the Legends tab, you’ll find her, enshrined under her maiden name, Marie Grasser, which means she and Marlene will always be paired.

For students at CHS today, the ones who see Marie on a daily basis as she works at the school, they know she’s a warm and welcoming presence and that she’s married to the ol’ ball coach himself, Ron Bagby.

They may even know her four children, April, Ashley, Mike and Jason, were all multi-sport stars who blazed across the campus, winning Athlete of the Year honors, setting records and carrying teams to state.

But what they probably don’t know is Marie was just as big a star in her day as any of her relatives.

In the days after Title IX, Coupeville High School finally powered up a girls basketball program, but it took until the FOURTH season before the squad got to practice in its own gym.

Seriously.

Prior to the 1977-1978 season (Marie’s sophomore year), the Wolf girls trekked out to Camp Casey, put their work in, then trekked back to campus to take showers.

As the Coupeville girls fought for respect, equality and some newspaper coverage (it wasn’t until the ’80s that articles started to expand past a size where you no longer needed a microscope to see them…), Marie was the program’s rock.

Players like Suzette Glover, Pam Jampsa and Kristan Hurlburt were among the early leaders in scoring, but #15 was a true two-way terror, scoring and hauling down an astonishing number of rebounds.

As I plow through the newspaper archives, one thing surfaces again and again in the truncated stories of the day — if there was a loose ball or a carom, Marie felt it belonged to her.

She pulled down 20 or more rebounds in a single game numerous times across her four-year career, with one game her junior season a particular standout.

Facing off with rough and tumble Concrete, Marie went off for 26 points and 28 rebounds, almost holding her own on the boards with the Lions, who mustered 31 rebounds as a team.

There have been some top-grade rebounding machines in Wolf uniforms over the years, from Sarah Mouw to Lexie Black to Makana Stone, but that 28 stands tall.

It’s the largest number for one game I’ve seen in my journey through the archives.

The early years of girls basketball at CHS were a tough road.

It took a decade before the Wolves posted a winning record and went to the playoffs, and longer before they made their first inroads at the state tourney.

But when you look back at the start of the program, it’s obvious — Marie Grasser was the spark that started things.

So today, for her superior skills on the court, for the talented children she gave her alma mater, for the classy way she approaches everything she does, we are very happy to welcome her into our little digital shrine.

It’s well deserved.

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A million little points!!

Posted in Basketball, tagged , , , , on July 27, 2017| 7 Comments »

Hoops hotshot Jeff Stone (top, left) is joined by (clockwise from top right) Mike Bagby, Randy Keefe, Jeff Rhubottom, Bill Riley, Pete Petrov, Brad Sherman, Denny Clark, Arik Garthwaite, and Bill Jarrell.

Want to impress people with random stats? I’m here for you.

As I pursue the basketball history of Coupeville High School, I’ve reached a milestone, having tracked down (fairly complete) scoring stats for every boys basketball season from 1960-61 to 2016-2017.

That’s 57 seasons and provides a pretty good overview of the Wolf program.

Now, CHS hoops has been playing since 1917, so I still have work ahead of me, though those early decades (with the possible exception of the ’50s) are fairly certain to be low-scoring affairs.

But, as I take a momentary break from digging through the dusty archives, let’s pause a moment and see if you can guess the answer to a bit of trivia.

Over those past 57 seasons, as shorts got longer, three-point bombs became a reality, and numerous sets of brothers passed through the school, how many players do you think scored at least one point in a varsity basketball game?

If you guessed 328 players, you’re either uncanny … or you looked ahead and cheated.

Either way, that’s what my research shows.

Having plowed through newspaper articles (some more helpful than others), yearbooks and (when they could be found) score-books, here’s everyone who put the ball into the hoop for the Wolves from 1960-2017.

With one small caveat. No one is claiming this is 100% correct down to the last point.

When your research is in a million little pieces and scattered to the wind, if you can walk away and say, “Hey, this is 98.6% correct,” then I think we’re OK.

And I feel OK.

CHS boys varsity basketball scorers (1960-2017) — * indicates active player:

Jeff Stone 1137
Mike Bagby 1104
Randy Keefe 1088
Jeff Rhubottom 1012
Bill Riley 934
Pete Petrov 917
Brad Sherman 874
Denny Clark 869
Arik Garthwaite 867
Bill Jarrell 855
Corey Cross 811
Barry Brown 769
Hunter Hammer 759
Steve Whitney 730
Dan Nieder 729
Chris Good 688
Gavin Keohane 677
Virgil Roehl 674
Foster Faris 668
Pat Bennett 659
Wade Ellsworth 659
Jason McFadyen 654
Rich Morris 637
Kramer O’Keefe 636
Wiley Hesselgrave 632
John O’Grady 611
Greg White 604
Joe Whitney 601
Brian Miller 597
Mike Syreen 594
Gabe McMurray 592
Randy Duggan 552
Roy Marti 551
Jim Syreen 550
Marc Bissett 549
Brad Miller 526
JJ Marti 520
Gary Faris 518
Cody Peters 518
David Lortz 502
Jason Bagby 499
Pat O’Grady 472
Sean Dillon 469
Hunter Smith 465 (*)
Frank Marti 462
Del O’Shell 440
Tony Ford 432
Caleb Powell 421
Ben Biskovich 407
Casey Clark 407
Nick Sellgren 406
Tom Logan 385
James Smith 382
Chad Gale 373
JD Wilcox 373
Ty Blouin 369
Caesar Kortuem 369
Ray Harvey 368
Pat Brown 355
Dick Smith 352
Glenn Losey 350
Timm Orsborn 345
Robin Larson 342
Byron Fellstrom 340
Kevin Faris 339
Michael Vaughan 337
Aaron Trumbull 330
Brad Brown 328
Charlie Tessaro 328
Ian Smith 324
David Ford 323
Bob Rea 320
Chris Marti 319
Gabe Wynn 316
Nick Streubel 314
Utz Conard 313
Ben Hayes 306
Allen Black 305
Noah Roehl 301
Blake Day 299
John Beasley 293
Risen Johnson 291
Brian Fakkema 290
Matt Frost 290
Mike Mallo 282
Keith Jameson 277
Terry Roberts 277
Kit Manzanares 275
Boom Phomvongkoth 275
Zepher Loesch 274
Alex Evans 272
Aaron Curtin 271
Tyler King 270
Joe Tessaro 270
Eric Hopkins 265
Harvey Wainio 265
Rick Keefe 259
Troy Blouin 256
Sean Callahan 256
Greg Fellstrom 248
Casey Larson 247
Jim Yake 247
Brandon Huff 245
Brad Haslam 235
Geoff Hageman 227
Curt Youderian 226
Ed Wood 219
Joel Walstad 217
Richard Cook 216
Ryan Keefe 214
Jordan Ford 210
Andrew Mouw 204
Vance Huffman 203
Tim Quenzer 202
Alan Hancock 198
Shawn Ryan 197
Trevor Tucker 194
Mike Millenbach 188
Dale Sherman 188
Scott Stuurmans 188
Wayne Hardie 178
Chris Cox 177
Evan Tingstad 177
Jerry VandWerfhorst 177
Anthony Bergeron 176
Mike Ankney 173
Ron Naddy 172
Dale Libbey 169
Tim Walstad 168
Randy Blindauer 166
Mark Bepler 165
Chad Brookhouse 163
Noel Criscuola 162
Monty Moore 155
Geoff Wacker 154
Bill Baas 153
Jim Faris 151
Steve Konek 149
Gavin O’Keefe 149
Ryan McManigle 148
Ryan Griggs 147
Hugh Abell 145
Ethan Spark 136 (*)
Craig Anderson 132
Mitch Aparicio 130
Scott Franzen 129
Ben Etzell 127
Pat Millenbach 126
Brian Shank 125
Jessie Smith 119
Scott McGraw 116
Christian Townsdin 116
Mitch Pelroy 115
Taylor Ebersole 114
Eric Taylor 112
Brian Barr 108
Joe Donellon 101
Jason McManigle 101
Bryan Hamilton 99
Brian Knoll 98
Morgan Payne 96
Christian Lyness 95
Ted Weber 91
James Meek 89
Dan Miller 89
Steve Bissett 87
Andrew Cashen 87
Carson Risner 86
John Sinema 86
Roy Mattox 83
Nick Morris 83
Caleb Valko 78
Ross Buckner 77
Matt Shank 77
JJ Johnson 76
Duane Score 76
Quinten Farmer 75
Matt Ortega 75
Mike Ellsworth 74
John Zimmerman 72
Jason Fisher 71
Tony Prosser 70
Les Jacobson 69
Tom Conard 68
Dean Grasser 68
Matt Bepler 67
Zack Swerdfeger 66
Ron Lamphere 65
Ben Hancock 63
Randy Stone 63
Mike Brown 62
Jason McDavid 62
Jeremy Staples 62
Brian Hageman 61
Erik King 61
David Davis 60
Tom Mueller 59
Brandy Ambrose 58
Steve Smith 58
Martin Walsh 58
Matt Helm 57
Dennis Terrell 57
Drew Chan 56
DeAndre Mitchell 56
Ellis Schultz 56
CJ Smith 54
Asa Owensby 52
Marc Aparicio 51
Chris Chan 51
Joe Kelley 51
Marvin Darst 50
Troy Hurlburt 49
Dalton Engle 48
Jerry Helm 48
Dalton Martin 47
Eddie Fasolo 45
Keith Dunnagan 42
Erick Harada 40
James Jorgensen 40
Nevin Miranda 40
Jeff Thomas 40
John Wyatt 40
Danny Bonacci 36
Hunter Downes 36 (*)
Charlie Toth 36
Jim Marti 35
Zeb Williams 35
Dante Mitchell 34
Dave Brandt 33
Ryan Kelley 33
Joey Lippo 33 (*)
Brian Roundy 32
Richard Barber 31
Ray Cook 29
Tim Leese 29
Ralph Lindsay 29
Rick Marti 28
Toby Martinez 28
Daniel McDonald 28
Joe Rojas 28
Todd Smith 28
Scott Sollars 28
Richard Benson 27
Mike Duke 27
John Holmes 26
Cameron Toomey-Stout 26 (*)
Mark Short 25
Tim Youderian 25
Jared Helmstadter 24
Trent Diamanti 23
Trevor Mueller 22
Dan Schleiffers 22
Jay Roberts 21
Dustin Van Velkinburgh 21
Matt Douglas 20
Jordan Emerson 20
Dean Strom 20
Scott Fisher 19
Scott Losey 19
Matt Petrich 19
Jason Raymond 19
Rob Blouin 18
Rick Keith 18
Marvin Mitchell 18
Gary Boyke 17
Jim Keith 17
Cedric McIntosh 17
Rick Frieze 16
Chad Nixon 16
Josh Wilsey 16
Steven Cope 15
Eric Dyer 15
Mike Lester 15
Brad Rogers 15
Henry Edwards 14
Todd Brown 13
DJ Kim 13
Mike Eaton 12
Guy George 12
Kole Kellison 12
Desmond Bell 11
Bill Hamilton 11
Ken Pickard 11
Jon Roberts 11
Chris Squires 11
Ben Winkes 11
Ron Edwards 10
Travis Hooker 10
Daniel Graham 9
Kyle King 9
Bruce Seiger 9
Fred Wyatt 9
Erik Anderson 8
Rob Fasolo 8
Kraig Gordon 8
Robert Shafer 8
Dave Wells 8
Charlie Cook 7
Brian Folkestad 7
Wayne Hesselgrave 7
Ed Cook 6
Chuck Hardee 6
Kevin King 6
Robert Kirkwood 6
Nic Anthony 5
Ariah Bepler 5 (*)
Jered Brown 5 (*)
Scott Davidson 5
JD Myers 5
Nate Steele 5
Andrew Bird 4
Bill Boze 4
Jason Legat 4
Morgan Roehl 4
Rusty Bailey 3
Luke Currier 3
Frank Mueller 3
Tracy Wilson 3
Teo Benson 2
Norm Enders 2
Chris Locke 2
Jeremy McCormick 2
Rich McCormick 2
Denny Moss 2
Tony Sherman 2
Stephen Stietenroth 2
Robbie Wanamaker 2
Oscar Liquidano 1

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Chasing history, a bucket at a time!!

Posted in Basketball, tagged , , , , on July 26, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   One of many blast from the pasts as I wander through Coupeville High School’s 100-year basketball history. (Megan Hansen photo)

Where have you gone, Jeff Rhubottom? Wolf Nation turns its lonely eyes to you.

As I plow through my current project — trying to track down the history of Coupeville High School basketball — it’s a mad swirl of players, some of whose exploits have unfairly slipped away into the mists of time.

But we’re going to change that!

Jeff Stone and Corey Cross, Bill Riley and Bill Jarrell, Randy Keefe, Denny Clark and Del O’Shell will once again get their moment in the spotlight, along side latter day legends like Brad Sherman, Mike Bagby and Pete Petrov.

Going through 100 years of hoops history (the first official CHS game was Jan. 19, 1917) is a daunting task.

There is no magical back room at the school where all the records were faithfully kept, so I’m relying on score-books which still exist (less than you’d think), old yearbooks and the dusty newspaper archives at the Whidbey News-Times.

The first thing I had to make peace with was there is simply no way to come up with a definitive historical record for rebounds, assists, steals, blocked shots, etc.

Even with the years where I have score-books to work from, the stat sheets have long vanished and newspaper articles were seriously lacking in non-scoring stats.

For example, Randy King coached CHS boys basketball from 1991-2011 and I obtained 18 of those 20 score-books. But not a single stat sheet.

So, my goals shifted slightly.

While it would be great to raise a basketball record board which showed the full range of stats, it ain’t happenin’ any time soon.

Instead, my plan is to have two boards, one for boys and one for girls, which will showcase the top 10 scoring leaders for a single season and a career.

In addition, the single-game scoring record will be honored.

For the boys, we know Jeff Stone poured in 48 against Darrington during the 1970 district title game, so game over on that one.

When I get to the girls, which will be easier (a lot less years to look at) and harder (painfully thin newspaper coverage in the early days), Judy Marti starts as the player to beat, based on a 32-point night in the early ’80s.

Doing this research, and working towards getting basketball its own record boards like track, football and volleyball, is long hours sprinkled with aha moments.

One of those comes from the aforementioned Rhubottom.

I had heard his name, in passing at least, and knew he was a player likely to appear on my charts, but I was surprised to find just how successful he was back in the day.

Having arrived on Whidbey in 1989, a decade after Rhubottom wrapped up his CHS hoops career, I had no clue he torched the nets for 459 points in the 1977-1978 season.

While my list is still a work in progress, with 55 of 100 seasons accounted for, what remains to document is mostly pre-1950s, when scoring would be much lower.

At the moment, Rhubottom sits with the second-best single-season performance (Stone’s mind-boggling 644 in 1969-1970 is untouchable) and is #4 career-wise.

I’m still working on stats for Corey Cross and Tom Sahli, so final standings could change a bit, but Rhubottom is golden. He will be on that board, two times.

And that is what has driven me, through the creation and installation of the school’s Wall of Fame for team titles, the revamp of the football record board and now the pursuit of basketball boards.

By bringing the greats of the past like Rhubottom back into the modern-day conversation, we pay tribute to what they accomplished, remind them they are not forgotten, and give today’s athletes genuine records to shoot at.

Past, present and future, all brought together, as I slowly go cross-eyed in the archives.

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