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Posts Tagged ‘Chase Anderson’

Plenty of hits, not enough runs

Posted in Baseball, tagged , , , , on March 16, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Landon Roberts was one of 10 Wolves to reach base Thursday. (Photo courtesy Sherry Bonacci)

They won the battle but lost the war.

Playing on the road for the first time this season, the Coupeville High School baseball squad outhit host Meridian 11-5 Thursday, only to fall 8-4 on the scoreboard.

The Wolves had their chances, putting base runners aboard in every inning, but couldn’t find that one big base knock to truly stagger the Trojans.

The non-conference loss, coming less than 24 hours after a home win against South Whidbey, evens Coupeville’s early-season record at 1-1.

The 2B Wolves get right back at it Saturday, travelling to North Mason to play their third consecutive game against a 1A opponent.

Thursday’s tilt started in favor of Coupeville, and the visitors were still within a run as late as the fourth inning, before several defensive mistakes stung them.

Wolf freshman Chase Anderson put his team on the board in the top of the first, whacking a one-out double, then scampering home to score on an RBI single from starting pitcher Jonathan Valenzuela.

Up 1-0, CHS had a chance to add to its lead in the second inning but stranded two runners after Landon Roberts walked and Aiden O’Neill singled.

Meridian scored the majority of its runs in two frames, pushing across four runners in the bottom of the second inning to claim the lead for good.

Coupeville stranded two more runners in the third, but Valenzuela shut down the Trojans and the Wolves rallied to cut the lead to 4-3 in their half of the fourth.

Scott Hilborn and Anderson delivered back-to-back two-out RBI singles to ruffle the Meridian pitcher, but the Trojans escaped and immediately got some payback.

The hosts tacked on three runs in the bottom of the fourth. Meridian only had one hit in the frame, but four walks and a passed ball proved to be the difference.

Trailing 7-3, Coupeville stranded two runners in the fifth and another in the sixth, before finally bringing home a runner in the top of the seventh, and final, inning.

Meridian had stretched the lead to 8-3, before Peyton Caveness reached on an error, then later scored on another Trojan miscue.

The rally died there, however, with Valenzuela thrown out at the plate while trying to score on a Coop Cooper single, and an ensuing groundout bringing an end to the game.

All 10 Coupeville players to see the field reached base Thursday.

Valenzuela paced the Wolves with three hits, while Hilborn and Anderson collected two base knocks apiece.

Caveness, Jack Porter, Cooper, and O’Neill also had hits, while Roberts, Johnny Porter, and Cole White got aboard thanks to walks.

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Tough ending, stellar season

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , on February 18, 2023| Leave a Comment »

The present and the future, as Wolf gunner Logan Downes inspires a young Coupeville hoops star. (Angie Downes photo)

For a brief, shining moment, the unthinkable became possible.

But then it was gone.

Trailing by 18 points entering the fourth quarter Saturday, the Coupeville High School boys’ basketball squad almost pulled off a comeback for the ages.

Ripping off 13 straight points thanks to a ferocious defense, the Wolves made visiting Auburn Adventist Academy flinch, and flinch hard, but the Falcons regrouped and closed out a 64-53 win.

The bi-district playoff victory sends the private school ballers to the 2B state tourney, while Coupeville falls a win shy of making a return trip to the big dance.

The Wolves, who snapped a 34-year state tourney dry spell last season, finish 14-9 and can return eight of the 12 players on this year’s final varsity roster.

Not making state stings, especially since CHS had two cracks at punching their ticket, but also lost to La Conner on a disputed game-ending call two nights ago.

But not returning to Spokane isn’t unusual, as half of last year’s 16-team field, including defending state champ Liberty (Spangle) didn’t earn an invite this season.

Kalama (3rd last season), Colfax (4th), Toutle Lake, Ilwaco, River View, and Mabton also missed out, with Kalama crashing to 2-18 after losing a large group of seniors.

Coupeville also took a hit in graduation, losing six players from the squad which went 16-2 last season, but the Wolves never bottomed out.

After opening with a series of games against 2A and 1A foes, Brad Sherman’s squad won the two-day Cascade Hoops Classic in Leavenworth, bouncing always-tough Kittitas and Manson.

The Wolves hit a smooth groove in the middle of the season, winning 11 of 13 games at one point, including one in which Jonathan Valenzuela banked in a game-winning buzzer-beater three-ball to knife La Conner on its home court.

Saturday’s winner-to-state, loser-out game pitted the two #1 seeds in the District 1/2 tourney, after La Conner shocked the hoops world by upending both Auburn and Coupeville to get back to state for the first time since 2019.

The Wolves and Falcons played a non-conference game Feb. 2 in Auburn, with Coupeville winning 58-52 as Logan Downes scored 32 of his game-high 40 points in the second half.

Like in that first contest, CHS fell behind by 13 points in the first half, though this time the deficit was achieved in a much-quicker, more-shocking manner.

As in the Wolves fell behind 13-0 while having considerable trouble cracking Auburn’s slap-happy full-court press.

Coupeville didn’t put a point on the board until freshman Chase Anderson drained a pair of free throws at the 3:26 mark of the first quarter, enduring being hit in the head as he crashed to the hoop.

Chase Anderson, only a freshman, provided a huge burst of energy and defensive scrappiness for Coupeville this season. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

The Wolves first field goal finally found the bottom of the net with less than two minutes to go in the opening frame, with Nick Guay popping a shot off a feed from Anderson.

The fab frosh came right back around with a bucket off of an offensive rebound, followed by baskets from Downes and Valenzuela, and the comeback was seemingly launched.

If someone walked into the gym right as the second quarter started, with Auburn clinging to an 18-12 lead, they would have had little idea of the carnage which came before.

That second frame was a slugfest, often quite literally, as both teams picked up a string of fouls, and things got chippy.

Coupeville got within four, Auburn surged back to a 10-point lead, then the Wolves hit four straight free throws — with two courtesy a technical foul called on the visiting coach — to cut things down to 29-23.

Unfortunately for home fans, the Falcons plunged a dagger in, as an Auburn guard slipped through a crowd of players and splashed home a three-ball which hit the floor right as the halftime buzzer shrieked to life.

That bitter taste on the back of the tongue carried over into the third quarter for the Wolves, as they struggled to put points on the board.

The best moment of the night came on a wild play in which Downes shot cross-court to outrun a rival for a ball after it was poked loose.

Somehow snagging the madly bouncing orb a step away from going out of bounds, the Wolf junior zipped a pass to Cole White in the far right corner while balanced, barely, on one foot.

Flicking the ball skyward, Coupeville’s wiry junior point guard splashed home his shot, the trey giving him exactly 200 career points with a season left to play.

Other than that, though, and William Davidson and White drawing offensive charging fouls on Falcon ballhandlers, the third quarter was a largely barren wasteland for the Wolves.

Outscored 16-7 in the frame, with Auburn knocking down a trio of three-balls, Coupeville headed to the fourth trailing 48-30 and in dire straits.

Cue up the gut-check defensive stand, as Sherman’s pack came out howling for blood.

Forcing numerous turnovers in the backcourt and converting most of them into wham-bam buckets, the Wolves ripped off 13 unanswered points to open the quarter.

Downes and senior Alex Murdy, who has spilled considerable blood, sweat, and tears as Coupeville’s primary defensive stopper, both rattled home six points during the surge.

The packed CHS gym was rockin’, with the road fans making a fair amount of noise in response to the hyped-up Wolf faithful, and LL Cool J seemed about ready to pop up at midcourt, mic in hand.

“Don’t call it a comeback, just call it a win.”

Except, this time around, Auburn didn’t wilt under the pressure.

Unlike in the first meeting, when the Falcons cracked down the stretch, this time they remained tough and resilient.

Auburn’s seventh, and final, three-ball of the night pushed the lead back to eight, and Coupeville was unable to put together back-to-back buckets at any point in the game’s final four minutes.

For a game in which seemingly every player finished with three or four fouls, there actually wasn’t an extraordinary number of free throws shot, though the Falcons did hit the ones they needed at the end.

Coupeville sank more charity shots — 15 of 25 to Auburn’s 13 of 18 — but left a chunk of points on the edge of the rim.

The playoff loss marked the final appearance for Wolf seniors Dominic Coffman, Jermiah Copeland, Valenzuela, and Murdy.

Alex Murdy (left) and Dominic Coffman played key roles in the rebirth of Wolf boys’ basketball. (Chloe Marzocca photo)

Downes paced the Wolves with a game-high 24 points, with Murdy netting all nine of his points in the fourth quarter.

Anderson (8), Guay (4), White (3), Coffman (2), Valenzuela (2), and Davidson (1) also scored, with Ryan Blouin working hard as a press-breaker.

Murdy, a terror on offense and defense during his Wolf career, finishes with 448 points.

Alex and older sibling Xavier, who scored 482 before graduating last spring, are one of just eight pairs of brothers to both top 400 points during the 106-year run of CHS boys’ basketball.

His running mate, Downes, caps one of the most remarkable seasons put together by a Coupeville hoops star.

The youngest of Angie and Ralph’s three sons scorched the nets for 554 points in 23 games — a hair over 24 points a night — while compiling the second-best single-season total by a Wolf player, boy or girl.

Logan’s junior season trails only Jeff Stone, who scored 644 as a senior in 1969-1970.

The previous #2 scorer was Jeff Rhubottom, who knocked down 459 points in 1977-1978.

Career-wise, Downes sits with 778 points, putting him #15 all-time on the CHS boys’ chart.

He passed Hunter Hammer (755), Barry Brown (769), and Jack Elzinga (770) Saturday, and will enter his senior season needing 360 points to catch Stone and Mike Bagby, who are tied at #1 with 1,137 points apiece.

While that duo tops the boys’ chart, Brianne King, who rained down 1,549 points between 1999-2003, is the undisputed school scoring champ.

 

Final season scoring stats:

Logan Downes – 554
Alex Murdy – 242
Cole White – 161
Nick Guay – 130
Jonathan Valenzuela – 85
Dominic Coffman – 60
Chase Anderson – 55
Ryan Blouin – 48
Zane Oldenstadt – 12
Jermiah Copeland – 10
William Davidson – 7
Mikey Robinett – 4
Hunter Bronec – 2
Quinten Simpson-Pilgrim – 2

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Bombs away, storm the floor

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , , on January 19, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville senior Jonathan Valenzuela overcame an eye injury Wednesday, hitting a buzzer beater to upend La Conner on its home floor. (Morgan White photo)

Did he call glass?

For that matter, how clearly could he even see the glass?

Playing with his right eye partially closed off after an early game injury which twice sent him to the sidelines, Coupeville High School gunner Jonathan Valenzuela hit one of the biggest buckets in program history Wednesday night.

Hauling in a cross-court pass from freshman Chase Anderson, the Wolf senior banked in a buzzer-beating three-ball from WAY behind the arc, lifting the Wolves to a stunning 57-56 win over host La Conner.

The shot capped a wild game which featured two Coupeville starters fouling out, the Braves clanging 16 free throws, and massive mood swings.

The fourth-straight win for the Wolves, and seventh in their last eight games, it lifts CHS to 2-1 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 9-5 overall.

It also keeps Coupeville’s record perfect against fellow 2B schools at 4-0, and flawless in games played off of Whidbey Island, with Brad Sherman’s squad 6-0 when away from the misty isle.

The victory could also have huge repercussions on playoff seeding, with two of three 2B schools in the NWL making the playoffs, and the top seed from that trio hosting its opening bi-district game.

Wednesday’s win leaves Coupeville at 1-0 in the three-team tango, with a home rematch against La Conner Feb. 7 and two bouts with Friday Harbor still ahead.

The Wolverines, struggling at 1-10 on the season, visit Whidbey Jan. 27, then host Coupeville Feb. 10 in the regular-season finale.

La Conner beat Friday Harbor in their first meeting, so the Braves are 1-1 in the seeding chase, with the Wolverines at 0-1.

Those teams play a second time Feb. 3.

For now, thanks to Anderson and Valenzuela’s magic, and a lot of small hustle plays which loomed large in a titanic rumble, Coupeville controls its own destiny.

To get to that point, the Wolves had to overcome the loss of sparkplug Dominic Coffman and leading scorer Logan Downes, who both picked up a fifth foul in a game where CHS was whistled for 23 fouls to just 15 for the home team.

Having overcome a 10-point deficit thanks to a torrid run late in the third quarter, Coupeville was clinging to a 47-44 lead when Downes was sent to the bench with six minutes to play.

With the Wolf junior averaging 25 points a game, the Wolves had to find their offense someplace else in the stretch run, and they did.

Cole White snapped the net on a short jumper, before Alex Murdy buried a three-ball from the top of the arc, and CHS looked golden, up 52-44.

The good times didn’t last, however, as La Conner closed the game on a 12-2 surge across almost all of the final five minutes.

Murdy knocked down Coupeville’s lone bucket in that stretch, converting a highlight-reel run through a pack of Braves, and the final two of his team-high 17 points proved to be huge.

But La Conner was trying to write its own miracle finish, and almost pulled it off, capping an 8-0 run when Braden Thomas sank a short jumper to stake the Braves to a 56-54 lead.

That left four ticks on the clock, the home fans were losing their minds, and everything, and I mean everything, had to go right for Coupeville to pen a Hoosiers-style finale.

So, that’s exactly what happened.

Wolf big man William Davidson alertly called a timeout on the inbounds play, moving the ball from the backcourt to halfcourt.

That put the ball in the hands of Anderson, a stone-cold killer who rarely betrays his youth in the heat of the moment.

The fab frosh had ended the third quarter with a fairly sensational buzzer beater of his own, banking in a runner from the left side to cap a 10-0 Wolf spurt.

That earned high praise from his fellow players and Coupeville fans, who chanted “He’s a freshman!” over and over during the ensuing break in action.

Chase Anderson, seen here in an earlier game, came up huge against the Braves. (Chloe Marzocca photo)

A quarter later, Anderson found himself handed the ball on the sideline, and, as his teammates broke, “The Magic Man” made the absolute perfect entry pass.

Murdy went flying by, sucking defenders with him, which allowed Valenzuela to pop open on the other side of the court.

Anderson, showing off the powerful throwing arm which marks him as Coupeville’s likely starting quarterback once Downes departs the gridiron, launched the ball and dropped it on a dime.

Valenzuela, his right eye bandaged, puffy, and still marked by blood after being roughed up by the Braves during an early-game scrum, never hesitated.

Ball on his fingers, ball flies far away, ball banks home, Wolf faithful lose their collective minds and storm the floor.

Jimmy Chitwood would be proud.

Valenzuela’s bomb capped a rough-and-tumble affair which La Conner controlled for much of the first half.

The Braves, behind a rampaging Isaiah Price, who scored 22 of his game-high 29 in the opening 16 minutes, led 17-13 at the first break, then pushed the lead to double digits twice in the second quarter.

The final time came at 36-26, but Coupeville didn’t break.

Instead, just as they did in their previous game against Neah Bay — another one-point win, just without the buzzer beater — the Wolves clawed back, cutting the lead right before halftime.

Valenzuela and Coffman each hit a free throw, off of the same foul, as Valenzuela, blood dripping down his face, was sent to the sideline after converting the first of what was supposed to be two charity shots.

Anderson closed the half by burying a three-ball, with Murdy snagging an offensive rebound and kicking it out to the young gunner.

The third quarter raised the intensity, with Murdy rejecting a La Conner shot, and Coffman and Cole White drawing offensive charges on the Braves.

Still trailing 42-35 midway through the third, Coupeville reclaimed the lead by scoring the final 10 points of the period, with Valenzuela, White, Nick Guay, and Anderson rattling the rim on successful shots.

That set up the fourth quarter fireworks, with the final result leaving CHS coach Brad Sherman mentally exhausted, but happy.

Winning back-to-back games by a point will do that for a guy.

“Wow! These guys never quit,” Sherman said. “A lot of guys stepped up tonight.

“La Conner is a tough team,” he added. “Really big to leave with a win – specially to do it that way!”

With Downes saddled with rare foul trouble, Coupeville spread its offense among multiple players.

Murdy led the way with 17, reaching an even 350 for his high school career, while Downes banked in 16 of his own in limited minutes.

That was still enough to lift him to 564 career points, and he moves from #44 to #39 on the all-time CHS boys’ career scoring chart for a program launched 106 years ago.

With his work against La Conner, Downes passes old-school Wolf hoops stars Marc Bissett (549), Jim Syreen (550), Roy Marti (551), and Randy Duggan (552).

Anderson (9), Valenzuela (8), White (4), Guay (2), and Coffman (1) also scored Wednesday, with Zane Oldenstadt, Ryan Blouin, and Davidson seeing floor time.

Riding high after back-to-back thriller wins, Coupeville faces one of its biggest tests Friday, when it travels to Mount Vernon Christian to face a 12-5 squad.

The Wolves beat the Hurricanes 44-39 the first time around, but that game was a “non-league” game against a league foe.

Friday’s matchup, however, counts in the NWL standings.

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JV boys go toe-to-toe with Turks

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , on December 10, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Chase Anderson banked in 17 points Saturday. (Morgan White photo)

Just out of range.

The Coupeville High School JV boys’ basketball squad hung tough all game Saturday but couldn’t quite catch up to visiting Sultan.

The Turks hit just enough shots down the stretch to maintain their lead, eventually heading back to the bus with a 59-49 win.

The non-conference loss drops the Wolves to 1-2 on the season, with two games on the schedule for next week.

Coupeville’s JV boys host Sedro-Woolley Thursday, Dec. 15, then travel to Forks two days later.

After that, the CHS young guns are off until Jan. 6, when they return to their own gym to host Orcas Island in the Northwest 2B/1B League opener.

Saturday night, Hunter Smith’s squad was down just 14-11 at the end of the first quarter, before Sultan pushed the halftime lead out to 38-30.

A modest 10-9 run in the third quarter, with four different Wolves scoring, kept things reasonable, but Sultan closed effectively, racking up a 12-9 advantage in the final frame.

Freshman Chase Anderson led Coupeville, banging away for a season-high 17 points and scoring in each quarter.

He rippled the net for a three-ball as well.

Johnny Porter and Aiden O’Neill chipped in with nine points apiece to back Anderson, while Camden Glover and Hurlee Bronec each banked home six.

Coupeville’s final bucket came courtesy Landon Roberts, with Malachi Somes, Jack Porter, and Mikey Robinett also seeing floor time for the Wolves.

It was the season debut for Glover and Roberts.

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Unforgiving rim foils JV boys

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , on December 5, 2022| 1 Comment »

Chase Anderson tastes the air up there. (Morgan White photo)

Lakewood flipped a switch.

Saturday’s JV boys’ basketball game was a one-basket affair eight minutes in, then the Cougars upped the ante.

Ripping off a 17-7 run in the second quarter, before tacking on a 19-5 surge in the fourth, the visitors steadily pulled away from Coupeville, handing the Wolf young guns a 63-33 loss.

The non-conference defeat, coming against a 2A school, drops CHS to 1-1 on the still-young season.

The Wolves, even missing several players, came out strongly in their home opener, and trailed just 11-9 at the first break.

Five different Coupeville players scored in the opening frame, but the basket turned fairly unforgiving after that.

The Wolves still hit a couple of big shots down the stretch, including freshman Malachi Somes netting a three-ball for his first points as a high school player.

But it wasn’t enough, as Lakewood was relentless and enjoying a love affair with the rim, which let shots drop from every angle.

Jack Porter paced the Wolves with a team-high 10 points, while Mikey Robinett fought in the paint to knock down six in support.

Hunter Bronec (5), Aiden O’Neill (4), Somes (3), Hurlee Bronec (3), and Chase Anderson (2) also scored for Coupeville, with Yohannon Sandles and Carson Field rounding out the active roster.

The JV boys get back at it next Saturday, Dec. 10, when they host Sultan. Tip is 3:00 PM.

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