Teagan Calkins (left) and Haylee Armstrong combined for seven hits in a 21-3 win. (Jackie Saia photo)
It was beautifully brutal.
For an inning-and-a-half Saturday, it seemed like visiting East Jefferson might be able to hang with the undefeated Coupeville High School softball squad.
Then reality hit. Like a hammer.
As in the Wolves delivered a 20-batter, 15-run bottom of the second inning — highlighted by a majestic out-of-the-park grand slam from Teagan Calkins — and the Smash Sisters were on their way to a resounding 21-3 victory.
By the time the frame came to a close, thanks to CHS having a runner leave base early, East Jefferson’s players looked shell-shocked.
It’s been a familiar look for Wolf foes this season, as Aaron Lucero’s squad has launched to an 8-0 start in which it has outscored foes 128-15.
With the loss to graduation of heavy hitters like Mia Farris, Madison McMillan, and Taylor Brotemarkle, there was some concern about Coupeville’s hitting after a 20-3 season which included two wins at state.
The answer so far?
Don’t worry about it, these Wolves are crushing the ball, with some new names tossed into the mix, and danger for rival pitchers to be found in slots one through nine.
Or, in this case, Rival pitchers, as that is what East Jefferson named its teams after folding Chimacum and Port Townsend into a 2-for-1 program.
No one on either current roster was around when Coupeville and Chimacum waged a fierce softball war across several seasons in the Olympic League.
But still, Saturday’s win could be considered payback for that time when a blind Chimacum umpire stole a league title from the Wolves, then shared cupcakes with the “winning” team while still in uniform.
Is my middle name Allen or “Mr. Petty?” You decide.
Even if you didn’t see every Wolf hit Saturday as being delivered with a fist raised to the sky, saluting the memory of Katrina McGranahan and her teammates, the base knock bash was still impressive.
It started where all things start, with “The Red Dragon” carving up pitching.
Calkins, the lone senior on this year’s team, is making the turn for the finish line after crafting a truly impressive run as a prairie powerhouse in three sports, but she’s still got magic to make.
Saturday, she pounded out four extra-base hits and walked, only missing hitting for the cycle for one reason — she can’t stop at first to get a measly single.
Always on the move, always looking for that extra base, Calkins smacked a two-out laser to left in the bottom of the first, slicing around the bag at first and sprawling into second with a double to fire the first shot.
The second shot came mere moments later, as Chelsi Stevens, who has moved from a part-time player as a freshman to the team’s ball-crunching cleanup hitter as a sophomore, whacked an RBI single to left.
When East Jefferson escaped the frame trailing just 1-0, there was a hint of hope emitting from the visitor’s dugout.
But just a hint, as Wolf sophomore hurler Adeline Maynes was unrelenting, whiffing seven in three innings of work, including one especially nasty pitch to punch out a Rivals hitter who had fouled off the previous two balls.
One of the few times East Jefferson made contact against Coupeville’s ace, a batter popped up a bunt, only to see CHS third baseman Sydney Van Dyke come crashing in hard to snatch the ball out of the air.
And then nirvana arrived.
Or the bottom of the second inning, so to speak.
Emma Leavitt led off the frame by getting plunked by a wayward pitch and little did she know she would come to the plate three(!) times in the inning as Coupeville unleashed a fireworks display of hits off of its multi-colored bats.
The longest hit?
The grand salami served up by Calkins, which disappeared over the left field fence, the ball seemingly intent on catching a ride to the ferry with a passing car.
The hardest hit?
A Capri Anter-fired rocket which went straight back up the middle, slamming off the pitcher’s glove and nearly taking her arm along with the mitt.
The most colorful?
A two-run single to left from Haylee Armstrong, who was rockin’ an ice cream-colored hitting stick.
Coupeville didn’t get its first out in the inning until batter #10, and the only reason they’re not still playing the frame is the Wolves gave away outs to ease the bloodletting.
When you go from trailing 1-0 to trailing 16-0, followed by Maynes flinging high, hard cheese that you can’t hit, game over, man, game over.
Though not technically, as the 10-run mercy rule only kicks in after five innings, so back to work the Wolves went.
Stevens and Anter delivered back-to-back RBI hits in the bottom of the third, Allie Powers eked out a bases-loaded walk, then Cami Van Dyke pasted a two-run single to make it 21-0 and bring Coupeville’s scoring to an end.
Armstrong moved into the pitcher’s circle for the final two innings, combining with Maynes to toss a no-hitter.
Zipping fastballs that rattled the windows on the homes in the nearby trailer park, she set down three batters on strikes, while the Wolf defense closed things with a pair of stellar plays.
On the first, Calkins tracked down a towering foul pop-up behind the plate, while on the second Coupeville nabbed a Rival during a run-down where the ball got whipped from Calkins to Stevens to Cami Van Dyke and back.
Saturday stats:
Zariyah Allen — One walk
Capri Anter — Two singles, one double, one walk
Haylee Armstrong — Two singles, one double
Teagan Calkins — Two doubles, one triple, one home run, one walk
Emma Leavitt — Two walks
Ava Lucero — One single, one walk
Olivia Martin — One walk
Adeline Maynes — Two walks
Allie Powers — One walk
Chelsi Stevens — One single, three doubles
Cami Van Dyke — One double, three walks
Sydney Van Dyke — Two walks
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