Daniel Olson had five hits Friday as Coupeville swept a doubleheader from visiting La Conner. (Photos by Morgan White)
It’s a tricky balancing game.
When you face an opponent which is obviously scuffling along, trying to build with younger, even middle-school aged athletes, there is a temptation to go beat the snot out of them.
To his credit, new Coupeville High School baseball coach Will Thayer did not do that Friday afternoon.
Yes, his Wolves swept visiting La Conner 12-2 and 21-0 in games shut down after five innings by the mercy rule, but it could have been much, much worse.
Instead, Thayer and his hardball aces put both games on ice, then did whatever was necessary to not rub La Conner’s face into the dirt.
From having his best hitters work on their bunting, instead of just swinging away, curtailing an aggressive running game once they were ahead, and getting every one of his 16 players into action, the afternoon will go down as a win in more ways than one.
With the sweep, Coupeville improves to 2-1 during this pandemic-shortened season, with six of its final seven games on the road.
First up is a trip to Darrington Tuesday to face the Loggers.
With Concrete cancelling its season due to a lack of players, Coupeville’s only remaining home game is March 30 against Mount Vernon Christian.
While Wolf fans won’t see their squad in person for almost three weeks, Friday’s sweep will leave positive memories.
CHS hurlers Cody Roberts and Scott Hilborn combined to throw a no-hitter on the afternoon, striking out 21 La Conner hitters.
Cody Roberts struck out nine hitters while working three innings.
Game 1:
The opener was actually close for the first 40 minutes or so, with Coupeville clinging to a 3-2 lead entering the bottom of the third.
Roberts struck out nine hitters through three innings on the mound, but was stung by a couple of walks and a crucial error which allowed two unearned runs to scamper home.
The Wolves plated two of their own in the bottom of the first, thanks to singles from Hawthorne Wolfe, Xavier Murdy, and Daniel Olson, with Olson’s laser beam back up the middle ripping the glove off the La Conner pitcher’s hand.
That got a burst of applause from girlfriend (and Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Famer) Lucy Sandahl, and signaled the start of a strong day for Olson, the lone Wolf senior.
Murdy came back around to loft a towering sac fly to center to stake CHS to a 3-0 lead.
Then, after the rare defensive lapse gave La Conner brief hope, the Wolves emphatically stamped out the flickering flame.
Coupeville tacked on two runs in their half of the third, with Olson chopping an RBI single which brought Jonathan Valenzuela around, before Roberts added an RBI groundout of his own.
With Hilborn taking the mound in the fourth, the sun may have been beaming down on a beautiful afternoon, but the lights went out.
The Wolf sophomore retired all six batters he faced in game one, punching out the first five on strikeouts, before ending things by getting his last hitter to pop up weakly, the ball tumbling into catcher Sage Sharp’s waiting glove.
The bottom of the fourth was an offensive bonanza for Coupeville, as it sent 10 hitters to the plate and pushed six of them across to score.
Coen Killian started things off by slicing a shot down the right field line, getting the ball to bite down in fair territory and squirt away from a madly-charging outfielder.
Sitting on second base, but just for a second or two, he quickly came around to tap home as Wolfe ripped a run-scoring single to left-center.
After that, it was a happy hit parade, as Murdy (double), Hilborn (RBI single), and Olson (two-run single) played whack-a-mole with La Conner’s pitching.
Killian and Wolfe reteamed in the bottom of the fifth, ending the game on a walk, a stolen base, and another RBI single.
Hawthorne Wolfe has bat, will hurt your pitchers.
Game 2:
More of the same, but a lot more.
Hilborn went the distance, tossing a perfect game, facing the minimum 15 La Conner hitters and closing things out just before darkness descended on Cow Town.
Seven Braves went down by strikeout, five by groundout, two on fly balls to left, and one on a soft liner to second base.
By contrast, Coupeville’s hitters put together a first inning offensive tutorial, scoring 12 runs and not getting an out until their 15th batter of the frame.
Wolfe, flexing his biceps and his wheels, led off with a double to straightaway center, before Murdy followed by dumping an infield single in front of the shortstop.
After that, eight of the next nine Wolves walked, with the lone exception, Roberts, reaching on an error.
That streak included RBI walks for newcomers Miles Davidson and Andrew Williams, as everyone showed a patient eye at the plate.
Capping the assault, Hilborn, Valenzuela, and Olson connected on consecutive run-scoring singles, and it looked like the inning might last until the light faded.
La Conner escaped however, as a fair amount of Wolf fans began to openly cheer for the visitors, who held their heads high and never complained or bitched as things crumbled.
Coupeville actually went scoreless in the second, despite two more hits, but then tacked on five runs in the third and another four in the fourth to set the final margin.
With Thayer using his full roster, everyone in a Wolf uniform got in on the good times.
Peyton Caveness came off the bench to wallop a pair of hits, mashing a double to left, then an RBI single to center, causing proud older sister Coral to scream louder than when her own CHS softball squad went to state.
Meanwhile young guns Zane Oldenstadt and Cole White both collected hard-hit singles, Gabe Reed scored his first run as a Wolf, and Nick Guay and Seth Woollet got quality at-bats.
Zane Oldenstadt was one of nine Wolves to have a hit on the day.
For Thayer, getting everyone in uniform on the field was the highlight of his day.
“It was great getting those other kids in there, who might not play every game,” he said. “Andrew (Williams) made some nice defensive plays, and Coen (Killian) had good at-bats.
“And our pitching looked really good today.”
Unofficially, Wolfe, Murdy, and Olson led the way, collecting five hits apiece, while Hilborn (4), Caveness (2), Valenzuela (2), White (1), Oldenstadt (1), and Killian (1) rounded out the hit parade.
As Coupeville’s players, coaches, and fans strolled to the parking lot afterwards, a nip in the air having replaced the sun of earlier, the chatter was positive.
Wolfe, still bouncing along with every step after five hours of baseball, was asked what he was doing with the rest of his Friday night.
“Gonna go play some (basket)ball!!” said the never-tired one.
And the Wolves roll on.
