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Posts Tagged ‘CHS Wolves’

They aim to thrill

Posted in Basketball, Wolves in college, tagged , , , , on November 16, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville’s Makana Stone had 14 points and a game-high 10 rebounds Saturday as Whitman women’s basketball won a close one. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Blowout or close game, they’ve got this.

A day after opening the season with a 39-point win, the Whitman College women’s basketball team won a gut-check special Saturday, edging dangerous Carroll College 74-72.

The win over the Montana gunners gives the Blues, ranked #21 in D3 hoops, a clean sweep at the Whit Classic in Spokane.

Whitman, which got a game-high 24 points from Mady Burdett and a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double from Coupeville grad Makana Stone, is just starting its road trip.

The Blues put their 2-0 record on the line next Wednesday, Nov. 20 when they travel a whopping 3.2 miles across town to face Walla Walla University.

After that, Whitman has two games in California and another two in Texas, before the home opener Dec. 13.

Saturday’s game was a brawl from start to finish, with the teams battling down to the final shot of the night.

Up 21-19 after one quarter, the Blues found themselves in a 38-38 tie at the half, then clinging to a 59-58 lead headed into the final frame.

Stone opened the scoring in the fourth, banging down a jumper to momentarily stretch Whitman’s lead back out to three points.

After that, the Blues turned to their long-range shooters, with freshman Shaira Young and Stone’s fellow senior, Burdett, each rattling home back-to-back three-balls.

Even then, the game wasn’t decided until the final ticks of the clock played out.

Burdett swished a trey to break a 70-70 tie, with Carroll responding with a layup with 35 seconds to play to pull back within one.

The Montana squad then stole the ball, and had not one, but two shots at taking the lead, only to watch both a three-ball and a put-back pop back out.

Whitman’s Kaelan Shamseldin pulled down the game’s biggest rebound, and sank one of two free throws with a single second to play to set the final margin.

Stone netted her 14 points thanks to 3-9 shooting from the field, and 8-11 from the free throw stripe.

Her 10 boards were a game-high, while the former Wolf added three steals while playing 29 minutes.

Two games into her final college season, Stone has 32 points, 13 rebounds, and six steals.

With 960 career points, she continues to move closer to becoming just the ninth female player in Whitman basketball history to crack 1,000 points.

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Thank you, Mr. Streubel

Posted in Football, Wolves in college, tagged , , , , on November 16, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Nick Streubel, great player, better man. (Photo courtesy Nanette Streubel)

He exits as a champion.

Actually, make that a three-time champion.

Barring a surprise invite to the NCAA D-II football playoffs, Coupeville grad Nick Streubel likely played his final college game Saturday night.

Appropriately, “The Big Hurt” and crew went out with a bang, as Central Washington University throttled host Simon Fraser 51-14 in Burnaby.

The win, the sixth-straight for the Wildcats, lifts them to 5-1 in league play, earning them a third-straight Great Northwest Athletic Conference title.

Central, having bounced back from a 1-4 start, sits at 7-4, keeping alive a slim chance it will hear its name called Sunday when the 28-team playoff bracket is announced.

Whether that happens or not, Streubel stands as one of the most successful former Wolves to ever compete at the collegiate level.

A team captain, the face of CWU football, an All-League and All-Region pick, the offensive lineman was a rock for the Wildcats every step of the way during his six-year adventure.

Streubel had two red-shirt seasons, the second due to a nasty hand injury, and graduated before this season.

With a new head coach, there was some question as to whether he would return to play a fourth, and final, season on the gridiron, but he remains one of the ultimate team players.

Anchoring the ‘Cats at center, he was hailed by his coaches for his dedication, and by ESPN announcers as a man worthy of a shot at the NFL.

He remains one of the best Wolf athletes I covered, not just for for his talent, but for his heart, his class, and the way he conducted himself on and off the field.

Talk to any current CHS or CMS athlete, and there are two names they all know. Two players they all want to be.

Nick Streubel and Makana Stone.

Transcendent athletes, and transcendent people.

The former walked off the gridiron Saturday night, while the latter just kicked off her senior season of basketball at Whitman.

Whether his playing days are done, or whether there is another game, another season still lurking around a corner, Nick Streubel long ago clinched his spot on my Wolf version of Mt. Rushmore.

And, at this point, he’s likely shaking his head, murmuring “simmer down, David.”

Too late.

Thank you, Nick.

For inspiring countless other young athletes.

I don’t know that you realize the impact you had, and continue to have.

But it is real, and it is tangible, shining through in so many conversations I have with those Wolves who are following in your footsteps.

Thank you for playing as a leader, always. For staying true to your friends and teammates, your family and yourself.

And thank you for just being a really good dude.

Most of all, thank you for letting me write about you. Even when I got all gushy.

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New season, new coach, new dreams

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on November 15, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Senior Hannah Davidson is a key returning starter for the Coupeville High School girls basketball squad. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Bouncing back from a volleyball injury, Chelsea Prescott is ready to singe the nets.

Ja’Kenya Hoskins (left) is out with a broken ankle, but she’ll be there to cheer on Izzy Wells.

Scott Fox is ready to get going.

Since taking over the Coupeville High School girls basketball program following the retirement of David and Amy King, he’s taken his new players to summer camp, but, come Monday, things get really real.

That’s when the Wolves show up in the CHS gym for their first practice, with a jamboree in Sedro-Woolley just 12 days later.

The Coupeville girls open the regular season with back-to-back road games Dec. 3-4, travelling to Darrington and Oak Harbor, before welcoming Orcas Island to town Dec. 7.

As Fox prepares for the 18-game season ahead (plus a potential playoff run), he and new JV coach Megan Smith are already appraising the talent they have, and how best to use it.

The Wolves, who finished third in the six-team North Sound Conference a year ago, lost three seniors to graduation, led by Lindsey Roberts, who exited as the #18 scorer in program history.

Her departure, along with those of Ema Smith and Nicole Laxton, leave a hole to be filled, but Fox won’t enter the season empty-handed.

Senior guards Scout Smith, Avalon Renninger, and Tia Wurzrainer, senior center Hannah Davidson, and junior forward Chelsea Prescott lead off the returning core, one the new Wolf coach will rely on to lead his squad.

“The strength of our team is going to be our experience,” Fox said. “We have four seniors and a junior who will lead us this year.

“I’m hoping that our senior experience, coupled with playing time opportunity for the others, will push us in practice and we will see the results in our games.”

The others he speaks of includes a mix of returning players, such as sophomore Izzy Wells, and newbies, like the freshman trio of Nezi Keiper, Carolyn Lhamon, and Maddie Georges.

Sophomore Ja’Kenya Hoskins, who was a hard-working rebound machine as a swing player last season, was expected to play a major role for Coupeville, but her body had other thoughts.

A broken ankle, suffered during a Homecoming week dodge-ball tourney, has subtracted her from the roster, likely for the entire season.

“Ja’Kenya is out, and that hurts,” Fox said. “But it has opened up opportunities for Izzy, Nezi, and Carolyn, who all play that position.

“We have a couple of incoming freshmen that could see a lot of varsity time,” he added. “Point guard Maddie Georges showed a lot of promise this summer. She ran the second team offense most of the summer, until she was slowed down with a back injury.”

However the roster ends up breaking down, the Wolves will look to make their mark on the defensive side of the ball.

With a scrappy team of ball-hawks at his disposal, Fox wants to take the game to opponents.

“We play very hard-nosed defense and will rely on our bench to keep the intensity up,” he said. “We are a defensive-oriented team, so, if things go as planned, our defense is our backbone.

“Transition offense from our defense is going to be crucial for our success,” Fox added. “We need to recognize our opportunities to attack with numbers or set up our offense when our fast break is not there.”

While defense is the spark, a basketball team still needs to score to win games, and the Wolves enter the new season without anyone like recent stars Makana Stone, Kailey Kellner, or Roberts, players who were established as go-to scorers in big moments.

Prescott has shown an ability to pump in points in a supporting role, though, while Smith and Renninger are steady shooters.

The chance is there for any of that trio, or other players, to blossom into a feared offensive weapon. They just need to seize the opportunity in front of them.

“We are asking kids to be scorers that really haven’t been in the past,” Fox said. “I was extremely pleased in the summer when we started to gel and the kids started to figure out their roles.

“I am all about the open person taking the shot, no matter who it is,” he added. “In fact, as the kids will tell you, if they have an open shot and don’t take it, we’re going to talk.”

While he’s a longtime hoops guru, Fox is still relatively new to Coupeville basketball, especially the girls side of the ball.

As he preps for league play, it will be a learning experience.

“Being my first year at the helm, I’m sure King’s is the team to beat,” Fox said. “They have always been very talented and will pose challenges for us and the rest of the league.

“I just don’t know much about the other teams, and who is coming back this year.”

Which doesn’t mean he fears, or overlooks, any opponent, regardless of what their record might have been in years past.

“My goals are to be competitive in every game,” Fox said. “Looking at our schedule, I feel we have the talent and desire to compete in all of these games.

“I’ve been stressing to the kids to be practice players and that will translate to game players,” he added. “The harder we play in practice, the more successful we are going to be in the games.”

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Stone, Blues romp on opening night

Posted in Basketball, Wolves in college, tagged , , , , on November 15, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville’s Makana Stone, with mom Eileen, banked in 18 points Friday as Whitman basketball rolled to a big win. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Get off to a fast start? Check.

Coupeville grad Makana Stone kicked off her final season of college basketball Friday by throwing down a game-high 18 points, as the Whitman women thrashed Concordia University 90-51.

The win came in Spokane, as the two squads helped launch the 2019 Whit Classic, hosted by Whitworth University.

After whippin’ up on their Texas counterparts, Whitman returns to the floor Saturday to play Carroll College out of Montana.

The Blues, who open the season ranked #23 in the D3hoops.com preseason poll, play their first seven games on the road, including a rematch Dec. 6 with Concordia in Austin, Texas.

After that, Whitman plays six straight at home in Walla Walla, beginning with two games at the Kim Evanger Raney Classic Dec. 13-14.

The Blues have a tough schedule, playing 15 of 25 regular season games on the road.

Starting off the season away from Walla Walla seemed to have no negative effects on Whitman, however, as it came out strong and put Concordia down hard.

A 21-12 run in the first quarter set the stage, while a 26-17 surge in the second turned the game into a potential blowout.

Not letting up, the Blues powered through a 24-11 third frame, then coasted home to a 19-11 tune in the fourth with the bench players carrying the load.

With Whitman romping, Stone and her fellow starters eased into the season, not having to play a tremendous amount of minutes.

The former Wolf star picked up her 18 points in just 19 minutes of floor time, draining nine of 15 shots from the floor.

Stone added three rebounds, three steals, and an assist, while Kaelan Shamseldin backed her up with 17 points, including five three-balls.

Mady Burdett popped for 10, giving Whitman three players in double-digit scoring, with 11 of the 14 Blues who hit the court landing in the scoring column.

With her 18-point performance, Stone has amassed 946 points across 84 college games.

She remains on target to become just the ninth female player in Whitman history to top 1,000 career points.

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Old-school foes become new-school rivals

Posted in Everything changes, tagged , , , , on November 14, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Maddie Vondrak and fellow Wolf athletes are off to a new league next year. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Changes, changes.

What we know for sure – Coupeville High School athletic teams drop from 1A to 2B next year, and the Wolves will take up residence in the Northwest 2B/1B League.

That reignites old-school rivalries, while also meaning next year’s seniors will be in their third league in four years.

As freshmen, they witnessed Coupeville’s final go-round in the 1A Olympic League.

Now, after two years in the 1A North Sound Conference, Class of 2021 athletes lead their fellow Wolves into the new frontier.

But, as we head back, who awaits our arrival?

Orcas Island, for one, where Oprah Winfrey reportedly dropped 8.3 million on a 43-acre secluded compound.

And there’s Darrington, birthplace of longtime Price is Right host (and Happy Gilmore co-star) Bob Barker.

Toss in four other schools, and you have a party.

 

Concrete:

Classification in 2020-2021 — 1B (drops from 2B)

Mascot: Lions

Team state titles: football (1984, 1985); softball (2007)

 

Darrington:

Classification: 1B (drops from 2B)

Mascot: Loggers

Team state titles: boys basketball (1955, 1957, 2003); baseball (1981)

 

Friday Harbor:

Classification: 2B

Mascot: Wolverines

Team state titles: volleyball (1986) 

 

La Conner:

Classification: 2B

Mascot: Braves

Team state titles: volleyball (2002, 2006, 2007, 2018)

 

Mount Vernon Christian:

Classification: 1B

Mascot: Hurricanes

Team state titles: None

 

Orcas Island:

Classification: 1B (drops from 2B)

Mascot: Vikings

Team state titles: girls soccer (2009)

 

With the move from 1A to 2B, boys soccer bounces from the spring to the fall, as 2B plays both girls and boys soccer in the same season.

That shifts Coupeville from having five sports in the fall, two in the winter, and five in the spring to a set-up of six-two-four.

The Wolves don’t currently wrestle or play golf like many of their new league mates do, while some of those schools opt of sports in which CHS fields teams.

The outlook, at least at the moment:

 

FALL:

 

Volleyball:

All six teams play, but not everyone plays like La Conner.

The Braves are the defending 2B state champs, and open the 2019 big dance Thursday against Willapa Valley.

La Conner is 16-0 this season, 20-0 last year, and has won 37 straight matches dating back to the final consolation match of the 2017 state tourney.

In Northwest League play, they have at least nine straight undefeated campaigns.

I say “at least” because the league’s website only goes back as far as 2011, with La Conner rolling to 10-0, 10-0, 10-0, 12-0, 7-0, 6-0, 7-0, 7-0, and 10-0 marks in that time.

Mount Vernon Christian couldn’t beat the Braves this year, but they are also at state, and open the 1B tourney Thursday against Klickitat-Glenwood

 

Football:

Friday Harbor, Concrete, and La Conner play, while Orcas and MVC don’t. Darrington has been playing eight-man football in a separate 1B league.

La Conner won the league title in 2016, the last year Orcas fielded a team, then has been stuck in rebuilding mode.

Concrete won in 2017, the last year Darrington played 11-man ball, then shared the title in 2018 with Friday Harbor.

That ’17 Lions title team was coached by Marcus Carr, who left Concrete after that season to take over the Coupeville football program.

Friday Harbor rolled to the title in convincing fashion this fall, and opens the state tourney Nov. 16 at Lake Roosevelt.

 

Cross Country:

Only MVC and Orcas field teams, with the Hurricane boys finishing 16th in the team standings at the 1B state meet this fall.

 

Boys Tennis:

Only Friday Harbor fields a team.

There were several years where Coupeville and Friday formed a two-team mini-league, though the Wolves have spent the past two seasons joining South Whidbey and playing in the private school-dominated 1A Emerald City League.

 

Girls Soccer:

MVC, La Conner, Orcas, and Friday Harbor play, while Concrete and Darrington don’t.

The Hurricanes (15-1-1) and Wolverines (8-7) both play Saturday in the quarterfinals of the state tourney, which combines 1B and 2B teams.

The league has been a competitive one in recent years, with La Conner winning conference titles in 2016 and 2017, before Friday Harbor came out on top in 2018, and MVC this fall.

 

Boys Soccer:

Orcas, MVC, Friday Harbor, and La Conner play, while Darrington and Concrete don’t.

The four NWL teams are joined by Providence Christian, Grace Academy, and Lopez for this sport.

League champ Orcas (14-1) and runner-up Friday Harbor (14-4) both play Saturday in the quarterfinals of the 1B/2B state tourney.

The Vikings have won back-to-back league crowns, after Providence Christian (2017) and MVC (2016) claimed the previous two regular-season titles.

 

WINTER:

 

Girls Basketball:

Everyone plays, and almost everyone chases La Conner.

The Braves have won five straight league titles, sharing the crown with Friday Harbor in 2015-2016 and claiming the other four crowns outright.

Darrington was the last team to hold off La Conner, ruling the league in 2013-2014.

 

Boys Basketball:

Everyone plays, with Friday Harbor winning the last two, and three of the last five titles.

In between, Orcas claimed the crown in 2016-2017, and La Conner was king in 2015-2016.

 

SPRING:

 

Softball:

Everyone except MVC plays.

Friday Harbor has been the big baddie, but it would be a shame if someone came along to blow up the league.

While the Wolverines have won five straight titles dating back to 2014-2015, they have gone 1-4 in non-conference games against Coupeville in that time.

After losing 7-6 in 2015, CHS has won 11-1, 9-4, 13-4, and 18-17 the past four seasons.

The two teams, who both advanced to state and won games there last season, meet Mar. 17 on Friday Harbor in a final non-conference tilt.

The following spring, the true battle begins.

 

Baseball:

Everyone plays, with Friday Harbor, which got knocked out in the state quarterfinals last spring, having won four straight titles.

The last three have been outright, while the Wolverines shared the 2015-2016 crown with La Conner, who won outright the season before.

 

Girls Tennis:

Only Friday Harbor fields a team, and the Coupeville female netters, unlike their male counterparts, played inside the North Sound Conference.

A two team mini-league with a lot of non-conference matches? Some kind of hook-up with another league for just one sport? Your guess is as good as mine at this point.

 

Track and Field:

La Conner, MVC, Concrete, and Friday Harbor field teams, while Darrington and Orcas don’t.

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