Coupeville 8th grader Savina Wells scored 10 points Tuesday, including hitting a pair of three-balls. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
Not great, but good enough.
Overcoming a rough start Tuesday, the Coupeville High School varsity girls basketball squad turned on the heat in the second half and romped past Concrete late, pulling out a 39-19 win.
The Wolves closed with a 17-2 run, busting open a close game and lifting their record to 2-2 on the season.
“This seems to be our theme this year — to start off sluggish and then play much better in the second half,” said CHS coach Scott Fox.
The Wolves, playing in front of their home fans for the first time this season, struck first, with sophomore gunner Maddie Georges rippling the nets on a jumper after a feed from 8th grader Savina Wells.
But then the offense flat-out disappeared, as Coupeville couldn’t get a bucket to fall for much of the first quarter.
Concrete slowly built a 7-2 lead, but it always seemed like just a matter of time before things would change, and they did.
Audrianna Shaw flipped the nets high on a jumper with a tick over a minute left on the clock, then Wells dropped in a three-ball off an inbounds play, and the score was back to 7-7 at the end of the quarter.
The Wolves couldn’t seem to pull away, however.
Georges nailed a three-ball of her own in the second quarter, but a 12-7 lead sputtered into just a 15-13 edge at the half.
Worse, Coupeville lost its point guard when Georges turned her ankle midway through the quarter, and she never returned to the game.
Missing their sparkplug, the Wolves gave more floor time to youngsters like Ryanne Knoblich, Gwen Gustafson, and Lyla Stuurmans, and the bench injected a bit of get-up-and-go.
Wells opened the second half with her second trey, but Concrete continued to hang around, cutting the deficit back to 22-17 midway through the third on a long outlet pass and layup.
That seemed to trigger something deep inside the Wolves, as they promptly went into lockdown mode from that point, starting a 17-0 run which stretched into the final seconds of the game.
Shaw swished a jumper and Carolyn Lhamon put back an offensive rebound to end the third, then CHS went to work in the fourth.
Junior post Ja’Kenya Hoskins picked up her first points of the season, and liked it so much, she finished with five in the fourth, while Lhamon, Shaw, and Knoblich also scored.
Concrete finally broke through in the final minute, hitting a pair of free throws to stop the bleeding right before the final buzzer blared.
Wells and Shaw tied for game-high honors, netting 10 points apiece, while Lhamon (6), Hoskins (5), Georges (5), and Knoblich (3) rounded out the offensive attack.
Everyone on the roster played, and everyone contributed, with Morgan Stevens, Izzy Wells, Kylie Van Velkinburgh, Anya Leavell, Gustafson, and Stuurmans all getting quality floor time.
Things get tougher next, as Coupeville welcomes Northwest 2B/1B League ruler La Conner to town Thursday.
The Braves, who have a win over 1A power King’s this season, bopped Orcas Island 83-21 Tuesday to raise their record to 5-0.
NO JV:
Concrete doesn’t have a second squad, so Coupeville’s young guns sat this one out.
