Genna Wright, seen here in 2019, returned to the tennis courts Monday along with her teammates. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
They were in mid-season form.
Returning to the courts for the first time since 2019, the Coupeville High School girls tennis team demolished visiting Friday Harbor Monday afternoon, and did it in epic fashion.
Not only did the Wolves win the varsity match 5-0, but they outscored the Wolverines 60-7, not allowing the visitors to take more than two games in any set.
Toss in a pair of JV wins and the final margin rolls out to a 76-12 tally.
Barring a major plot twist, it would seem pretty safe to bet on Coupeville winning the Northwest 2B/1B League title this year, as Friday Harbor will be its only foe in a pandemic-shortened six-match season.
While the NWL is currently a seven-team conference, tennis gets the short end of the stick as most league schools don’t offer the sport.
Chimacum, which has played tennis in the past, was originally set to join Coupeville in its new league, but that plan was put on hold for a year by COVID-19.
For now, the Cowboys have partnered with next-door neighbor Port Townsend, and compete as East Jefferson in the 1A/2A Olympic League.
With everything disrupted this school year, Coupeville also can’t play its normal arch-rival, South Whidbey, as the NWL is playing spring sports first, then fall, before closing with winter.
Meanwhile, South Whidbey, as part of the Emerald Sound Conference, is going fall-spring-winter, same as the Olympic League, putting both boys and girls tennis in opposite seasons from the Wolves.
While a six-game schedule against what looks like a pretty overwhelmed Friday Harbor program isn’t perfect, CHS coach Ken Stange pledged to possibly tinker with his lineup going forward to create competitive matches as much as possible.
Monday, the Wolves controlled every bout, and did it with relative ease.
But, as much as they enjoyed the final scores, just getting the chance to compete again, masks and all, was the biggest win.
Noelle Daigneault, possibly the bubbliest of all Wolves, won her varsity singles match, then immediately ambled to a different court and joined tennis newbie Sophie Martin to net a doubles victory.
“I would shake your hand, but I’m not going to,” Daigneault chuckled as she met her opponent at the net, mindful of pandemic protocols.
“But just know, I really do want to!”
On a nearby court, Vivian Farris and Hayley Fiedler, making their CHS tennis debuts, giggled between points, then seemed to surprise themselves a bit by slapping perfectly-placed winners.
And on court #1, Genna Wright, returning to action after a soccer injury, then a pandemic, put a crimp in her junior year, was back to sending screaming forehands past her foe.
Her mask covered most of her face, but around the eyes you could see relief, and happiness.
She was back in action, and everything seemed slightly brighter on an otherwise cloudy day in Cow Town.
Complete Monday results:
Varsity:
1st Singles — Genna Wright beat Allie Fleming 6-1, 6-2
2nd Singles — Noelle Daigneault beat Lucy Martin 6-2, 6-0
1st Doubles — Jamiee Masters/Emily Fiedler beat Amelia Eltinge/Ava Martin 6-0, 6-1
2nd Doubles — Abby Mulholland/Eryn Wood beat Lucy Marinkovich/Eleanor Rollins 6-0, 6-0
3rd Doubles — Katelin McCormick/Mary Milnes beat Trinity Cullen/Isabella VanderYacht 6-0, 6-1
JV:
4th Doubles — Vivian Farris/Hayley Fiedler beat Elanor Gislason/Eva Sanabria 8-4
5th Doubles — Sophie Martin/Daigneault beat Lilli Turnbow/Annabelle Mountford 8-1
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