Taylor Brotemarkle had 11 digs Thursday as Coupeville won a battle of undefeated volleyball teams. (Photo courtesy Kim Brotemarkle)
And then there was one.
A day that started with three teams still unbeaten in Northwest 2B/1B League varsity volleyball action ended with just one squad still spotless.
That team?
Coupeville High School, which pasted visiting Darrington 25-21, 25-11, 25-16 Thursday to get to 4-0 in conference play, 5-0 overall.
The Wolves, who have won all 15 sets they have played in regular season action, are in the driver’s seat right now.
CHS sits a game-and-a-half up on Mount Vernon Christian (2-1) in the NWL, a team they have already beaten in their first meeting.
After that, it’s a logjam, with Darrington, La Conner, and Orcas Island all at 1-1, while Concrete is 0-2 and Friday Harbor 0-3.
Coupeville is off until next Thursday, Oct. 3, when it hosts Orcas.
While the Wolves still have six league matches left, the week that was, was pretty dang spiffy.
Coming off a straight-sets road win over the Evil Empire (La Conner), Coupeville welcomed Darrington to town for the lone meeting this season between the schools.
The Loggers, one of two 1B schools in the conference, were 5-0 overall entering the night, and feature some lanky big hitters who can drop the thunder and the lightning.
To which the Wolves said, you ain’t seen nothing yet, with Katie Marti bounding from one side of the court to the other, zipping passes to her weaponized snipers.
Mia Farris uncorked nuclear blasts from both fists.
Lyla Stuurmans tried to rip divots in the gym floor.
Madison McMillan mashed like a magnificent maniac.
And then they unleashed “The Red Dragon,” with Teagan Calkins spraying a career-high 19 winners to make the spines of the Darrington players run cold with fear.
Madison McMillan was superb in all aspects of the game. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
The first set was a battle royale, just as expected, with the teams staying within a point of each other all the way until Coupeville found itself clinging to a 17-16 lead.
Enter McMillan, who strode to the service line, rolled the ball between her hands, looked up into the stands to make sure Grandpa Gordon was watching from above, and then delivered the goods.
A six-point run on her serve — punctuated by running mate Stuurmans thrashing the snot out of the ball on a winner which zipped over the heads of the Loggers, then plunged down and bit the back line — was the difference.
Darrington had no answer for McMillan’s artful work from the line, and the Wolves seized the moment.
Marti had two Logger-busting service runs in the second set, while McMillan added another one of her own, and Coupeville made short work of the middle frame.
Calkins and Farris took turns busting the defense (and the sound barrier) with window-rattling kills, while Jada Heaton kept things interesting by flicking a sweet winner that snuck over the net by the thinnest of margins.
Meanwhile Marti was on her horse, running down everything, ensuring no volleyball would escape on this night, no matter how far out of bounds it was headed when she caught up to it.
She and her teammates kept numerous plays alive, denying Darrington too many easy winners, then struck with a cold fury when given the chance to end a play themselves.
The Loggers, who entered the night ranked #3 among 1B teams by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association, showed great potential and improvement from previous seasons.
But the Wolves, a senior-dominated team intent on making one final fantastic run, were too much for the visitors to overcome.
Darrington hung tough in the third set, but had no answer for plays such as the one where Stuurmans crashed to the floor to pluck a ball off the hardwood, which then set up another winner from the rampaging Calkins.
Farris let loose with a string of spikes to close things out, with the final point of the evening coming from Stuurmans, who laced a winner off the last fleck of paint on the backline.
Homecoming proposals were on the menu. (Photo courtesy Jennifer Marzocca)
As people celebrated around him, and Homecoming proposals rained down, CHS coach Cory Whitmore surveyed the scene with a smile.
“I’m really proud of the whole team,” he said. “We ran two different defenses, a different one for each of their big hitters, and everyone played their roles.
“Our first ball contact was really strong, and we looked confident against tough servers,” Whitmore added. “Just a strong night all around.”
Thursday stats:
Taylor Brotemarkle — 1 kill, 11 digs, 1 assist
Teagan Calkins — 19 kills, 6 digs, 1 ace
Mia Farris — 9 kills, 11 digs, 1 assist, 2 aces
Jada Heaton — 2 kills
Katie Marti — 1 kill, 10 digs, 35 assists, 2 aces
Madison McMillan — 4 kills, 11 digs, 2 aces
Lyla Stuurmans — 7 kills, 2 digs, 2 assists, 1 solo block, 2 aces
Coupeville Sports 