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Posts Tagged ‘CHS Wolves’

CHS girls soccer adds JV squad

Posted in Girls Soccer, tagged , , , , on September 3, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Thanks to a strong turnout, Coupeville High School girls soccer coach Kyle Nelson will have both a varsity and JV this fall. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

If you wanted more soccer, you’re in luck.

The turnout for Coupeville High School’s girls program was strong enough that the Wolves will have a full-time JV squad this fall.

It’s the first time in many years the CHS female booters have been able to field two teams.

That’s a huge boon for the program, as it allows the Wolves to get substantial playing time for everyone on the roster, something which wasn’t always possible the past season or two.

While Coupeville’s varsity has a 15-game schedule, the JV is set to take the pitch 10 times.

The second squad gets home and away games with four of the five other schools in the North Sound Conference, with Granite Falls the only league school not fielding a JV team.

CHS also gets JV games against non-conference foes Port Townsend and Friday Harbor, though the length of both of those road rumbles may be affected by the need to catch certain ferries.

 

The JV girls soccer schedule:

Thur-Sept. 12 — @Friday Harbor (after varsity)
Tues-Sept. 17 — @King’s (4:00)
Thur-Sept. 19 — @Sultan (5:00)
Tues-Sept. 24 — Cedar Park Christian (4:00)
Tues-Oct. 1 — South Whidbey (4:00)
Tues-Oct. 8 — King’s (4:00)
Thur-Oct. 10 — @Port Townsend (after varsity)
Tues-Oct. 15 — Sultan (4:00)
Thur-Oct. 17 — @Cedar Park Christian (4:00)
Mon-Oct. 21 — @South Whidbey (4:00)

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Small in numbers, big in heart

Posted in Boys Tennis, tagged , , , , , on September 3, 2019| Leave a Comment »

After a ton of off-season work, Drake Borden returns to anchor the Coupeville High School boys tennis squad at #1 singles. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Zach Ginnings is part of a solid core of returning Wolf players.

He’s never been in this position before.

Longtime Coupeville High School boys tennis guru Ken Stange has built a successful program, one which has boasted deep rosters and plenty of success.

But this season he’s facing the prospect of trying to achieve the latter without having the former.

Eight days out from their first match, the Wolves have just seven players.

While they’re all returnees, that’s not even enough netters to fill a full varsity lineup.

Coupeville needs eight men, with their league matches consisting of two singles players and three doubles teams.

With school starting Tuesday, there’s hope of at least one freshman showing up, and Stange and Co. continue to chase down every lead which might lead to a CHS boy with a pulse.

But, even if they get any late-comers, the Wolves will have to forfeit a match in each of their hard-court rumbles until the newbie(s) get 10 practices under their belt.

While he doesn’t have much depth, Stange does have a solid core of players, led by Drake Borden, who inherits the #1 singles slot from the graduated Jakobi Baumann.

“Our strength is having seven returning players with experience,” Stange said. “Another strength is Drake, who played all off-season and is primed for a solid season.”

Backing Borden are Mason Grove, James Wood, Zach Ginnings, Andrew Aparicio, Thane Peterson, and Koby Schreiber.

Of the returning players, two – Borden and Ginnings – played in the postseason last year.

Regardless of how many players he ends up with, Stange enters the season with the same mind-set he’s employed for the past decade-and-a-half.

“I expect us to compete hard and win some more individual matches,” he said. “I hope our team is able to win a few, too.”

While all of Coupeville’s other sports teams compete in the North Sound Conference, tennis joins up with South Whidbey to take on the private school powerhouses who camp out in the ultra-exclusive Emerald City League.

It’s a conference led by perennial state title contenders University Prep and Seattle Academy, and no match is an easy match.

But the Wolves made a nice statement for public schools everywhere last year, finishing in the top half of the eight teams in the ECL.

It might not have a deep roster in year two, but Coupeville has no intention of backing down quietly.

“We finished fourth in the league last year,” Stange said. “Finishing that well again would mean we had a strong season.”

Coupeville opens Sept. 11 at home against South Whidbey.

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Booters chase playoff dreams

Posted in Girls Soccer, tagged , , , , on September 3, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Genna Wright enters her junior season on the soccer pitch tied for #3 all-time among Coupeville girls goal scorers. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Mallory Kortuem (right) is part of a rock-solid group of seniors intent on leading the Wolves back to the playoffs.

They would love to still be playing in November.

A rough late-season loss on the turf at Sultan last year denied the Coupeville High School girls soccer squad a trip to the playoffs, snapping a four-year run of postseason activity for the Wolf booters.

But now, as it heads into year two in the North Sound Conference, Coupeville wants to get back to playing extra games.

The regular season is set to end Oct. 23, but the Wolves are aiming to stay in uniform after that.

“My goal is to form a well-organized, disciplined, exciting-to-watch squad,” said CHS coach Kyle Nelson. “And, with anyone who watches us play this year seeing improvement through the course of the season.

“I would like to finish with a berth to the postseason,” he added. “So, the season will be a success if we make postseason play.”

King’s, which went 18-3 and fell in the quarterfinals of the state tourney a season ago, is the overwhelming league favorite.

“Always an excellent team,” Nelson said.

After that, it should be a brawl, with South Whidbey, Cedar Park Christian, Granite Falls, Sultan, and Coupeville vying for the other four postseason berths.

While the Wolves lost several key players to graduation, including four-year star Lindsey Roberts, the roster is still jam-packed with quality players.

Leading the way is junior forward Genna Wright, who has tallied 17 goals through her first two seasons on the CHS pitch.

That puts her in a tie with Roberts for #3 all-time among Wolf girls, chasing Mia Littlejohn (35) and Kalia Littlejohn (33) on the career scoring list.

Wright’s support crew includes four seniors who have combined to pepper the back of the net for a combined 17 goals during their prep days.

Midfielder Avalon Renninger leads that group, with six career goals, while midfielder Mallory Kortuem (4), defender Tia Wurzrainer (4) and forward Anna Dion (3) have also shown a nice touch around the net.

There’s plenty of other battle-hardened players on the roster, with senior defender Natalie Hollrigel, junior goaltender Mollie Bailey, sophomore defender Mary Milnes, and sophomore midfielder Audrianna Shaw primed for big seasons.

“We are returning quite a few starting varsity players in most positions on the field,” Nelson said. “We are also lucky enough to be bringing in a few experienced players to fill in some of our holes.

“We will be looking to incorporate some new players who look to be important to our team,” he added. “But it can take a while for both the defense and the new players to fully integrate.”

Sophomores Eryn Wood (defender) and Sophia Martin (midfielder/forward) are also expected to contribute, while freshmen Carolyn Lhamon (midfielder) and Nezi Keiper (defender) were both standout youth league players.

Coupeville kicks off its season this week, with a four-team jamboree Thursday in Oak Harbor (5 PM), followed by a home non-conference clash Saturday with Meridian (1 PM).

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Bad to the bone

Posted in Football, tagged , , , , , on September 2, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville High School’s football squad got a taste of live action Friday at a five-team jamboree in Sedro-Woolley. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Gavin Straub, primed to explode and get all up in someone’s face.

“OK, that’s two votes for McDonald’s so far, and three for KFC… “

Gavin Knoblich wraps up a wayward runner.

The best dang managers in the game.

Wolf senior Andrew Martin comes rumbling up the middle, taking the first steps on his way to a 30-yard stroll to the end zone.

Ready to get rowdy.

Sean “The Torpedo” Toomey-Stout brings the heat.

Closer and closer, each snap one more step down the path.

The Coupeville High School football team sits just four days out from its season opener — Friday at home vs. Port Townsend — and all the wrinkles are being ironed out.

The Wolves got a taste of live action Friday when they traveled to Sedro-Woolley for a five-team jamboree, emerging with strong showings on both sides of the ball.

Strolling into town, then wandering away on a journey which eventually brought him (and his camera) back to Whidbey, was paparazzi to the stars John Fisken.

The pics seen above are a taste of what he shot.

To see more, pop over to:

https://www.johnsphotos.net/Sports/Coupeville-Football-2019-2020/FB-2019-08-30-Jamboree-at-Sedro/

And, as we head into a new school year, a reminder that a percentage of all purchases comes back around.

Fisken hands out a pair of scholarships to CHS senior student/athletes at the end of the year, financed by photo sales.

So, basically, the circle of life kicks in when you buy some glossies for grandma.

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CHS tennis needs players … stat!

Posted in Boys Tennis, tagged , , , , on September 1, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville High School boys tennis coach Ken Stange needs more company. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

At this rate, bus rides may get a little lonely.

A week into practice for a new season, Coupeville High School boys tennis coach Ken Stange has the smallest roster of his 16-year tenure.

Seven athletes to be exact – five seniors, one junior, and one sophomore – which is troublesome when the Wolves need eight to field a full varsity team.

Coupeville’s netters are set to compete in the Emerald City Conference for a second year, but may have trouble filling out the required matches in league play.

The ECL plays a varsity format of two singles contests and three doubles bouts.

As it stands now, the Wolves would have to forfeit a slot each match, most likely at #2 singles.

Starting down 1-0 every match would make life tougher in an already highly-charged league.

The ECL is considered the best 1A boys tennis league in Washington, with private schools heavyweights like University Prep and Seattle Academy accounting for the majority of state champs in recent years.

Still, the Wolves held their own last year, claiming fourth-place in the eight-team league.

While all of Coupeville’s other sports teams are part of the North Sound Conference, only two of six schools in that league have boys tennis programs.

The other is South Whidbey, and the next-door neighbors both hooked up with the ECL, which is otherwise comprised of Seattle-area private schools.

With school opening Tuesday and Coupeville’s first match set for Sept. 11, Stange is still hopeful at least one more tennis player will surface.

So, put the word out to any CHS male in grades 9-12.

If they have prior experience, great.

If not, Stange, a noted net guru, is ready and willing to teach the game.

When asked what he was looking for in a player at the moment, the CHS coach kept it simple.

“A pulse.”

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