Coupeville freshman Chelsea Prescott played strongly Friday, but Port Townsend’s Kaitlyn Meek carried the RedHawks past the Wolves. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)
Meek shoots over the defense of Coupeville’s Lindsey Roberts.
Kaitlyn Meek has waited for this moment.
For the last four years, the Port Townsend gunner has been one of the best girls basketball players in the 1A Olympic League, but Coupeville has always been the best team.
But the Wolves of 2017-2018, weighed down by graduation losses, injuries and defections, are not flying quite as high as they did during three straight unbeaten league campaigns.
Friday night Meek took advantage, tossing in 14 of her game-high 19 in the second half, spurring the RedHawks to a huge 39-26 come-from-behind win on Coupeville’s floor.
Sparked by its senior star, Port Townsend jumps to 5-2 in league play, and goes a game up on Coupeville (4-3) and Chimacum (4-3) with two to play.
All three are guaranteed playoff spots, since Klahowya (1-6) has already been eliminated, but a league title gives a team direct entry into the double-elimination portion of districts.
If three-time defending league champ Coupeville finishes second or third, it will host its first postseason game, but will also have to survive either one or two loser-out games.
With two conference games left, Feb. 1 at Klahowya and Feb. 3 at home against Chimacum, the Wolves still have a shot at a fourth-straight title, or at least a share of one.
But, to win the title outright and be a #1 playoff seed, Coupeville has to sweep its final two league games, while hoping for back-to-back RedHawk losses.
If CHS and PTHS were to finish with the same record, the tiebreaker for seeding would go Port Townsend’s way, as it took the season series 2-1.
Friday’s royal rumble was a tale of two halves with two very different styles.
In the first 16 minutes, Coupeville’s crushing defense did its job extremely well, limiting the RedHawks to just seven points, five from Meek.
And, while the Wolves weren’t exactly burning up the nets themselves, clinging to a 12-7 lead at the half, they looked like they were largely in control.
Exchanging buckets to open the third, Coupeville got a beauty when Lindsey Roberts slapped home a layup in traffic off of a nifty entry pass from Sarah Wright.
At which point Meek, after three years of chasing Wolf stars like Makana Stone, Kailey Kellner and Co., only to see her teams fall short, unleashed payback.
Slashing to the hoop at will, exploiting her quickness and ability to score inside and outside, the veteran RedHawk kicked off a game-busting 10-0 run that turned a five-point deficit into a five-point advantage.
CHS, which struggled mightily to get anything to drop all night, finally stopped the hemorrhaging when Hannah Davidson snared a ball out of mid-air and beat the shot clock by half a tick.
That pulled the Wolves within 19-16 and a Coupeville win still seemed very possible.
Cue Meek, who plunged into the heart of the defense, nailed a short turn-around jumper while being pummeled, then added a free throw to stretch the lead back to six exiting the third.
After a game that featured a second quarter where both teams scored just two points apiece, the fourth quarter was an offensive fireworks show.
Unfortunately for the Wolves, 17 of the 27 points to drop through the net in the final eight minutes came from the visitors, who stretched the lead out to double digits and coasted home for the win.
Roberts nailed a gorgeous three-ball from the right corner late in the game, while Wright got three the old-fashioned way with a put-back and free-throw.
The charity shot marked a milestone, as it was the 100th point of Wright’s career.
Playing without three starters, and with reserve Avalon Renninger out with a concussion, Coupeville had a thin bench and tired legs hurt the Wolves in the end.
“It was just a tough game,” said Coupeville coach David King. “I was happy with the effort put forth by those who played, though.
“Lindsey was one who kept fighting until the end, even though she was dead tired.”
Roberts and freshman Chelsea Prescott led the offensive attack, each hitting for seven, while Scout Smith knocked down her four points in the first quarter.
The sophomore spark-plug swished a pair of free throws, and also snagged a long outlet pass and threw down a runner after Coupeville beat the RedHawk press.
Ema Smith (3), Wright (3) and Davidson (2) also scored.
Wright was a beast on the boards, hauling down 12 rebounds, with Roberts (eight rebounds, two blocks, two assists) and Allison Wenzel (three rebounds) backing her up.
Swing player Ashlie Shank, getting her most varsity minutes of the season, snagged a rebound, helped run the offense while on the floor and drew praise from her coach for “giving us a lot of hustle.”
