Lauren Rose will not be denied. (John Fisken photos)
Lauren Bayne holds up well under pressure.
The joint was jumpin’.
Backed up by a foot-stomping, lung-busting, “D-FENSE!!!”-screaming gym full of their classmates, the Coupeville Middle School 8th grade varsity put a beat-down on visiting Granite Falls Monday.
Having moved up to the high school gym for their home finale, the Wolves got a taste of the floor they will play on next year as freshmen and they reveled in it. Holding the Tigers scoreless until midway through the second quarter, Coupeville romped to a 33-17 victory.
The gym was packed, with the entire population of CMS spending the last half hour of their school day watching classmates like Katrina McGranahan and Payton Aparicio play, and the youthful fans made their presence felt.
Face paint, signs and sustained screaming that never waned, they came loud and proud.
Buoyed by the support, the Wolves stormed out to a 6-0 lead after one quarter, with only a couple of narrow misses keeping it from being a far bigger blowout.
Lauren Rose, Mia Littlejohn and McGranahan each hit a bucket, with Littlejohn’s coming on a steal where she streaked the length of the court, then juked the last defender out of her high tops at the end and calmly banked the ball over the girl’s head and off the glass with a gentle plop.
Not only did Granite Falls not score in the opening quarter, they didn’t have a single shot come remotely close to getting in the hoop.
Too often, they simply lost control under pressure from speedy Wolves like Lauren Bayne, and spent most of their time chasing after Coupeville fast breaks.
The Tigers finally broke through, only to have the Wolves quickly respond each time.
Kyla Briscoe hit back-to-back buckets to blunt one Granite Falls rally, while the duo of Littlejohn and McGranahan controlled the second half, working an outside-inside game.
The pair combined to outscore the visitors by themselves, with Littlejohn dropping in a game-high 13, including a three-point bomb, and McGranahan pounding away inside for 10 more.
Bayne and Briscoe popped for four apiece and Rose tossed in a bucket to round out the scoring.
After the beautiful start, the afternoon’s final three games didn’t go quite as well, though all had their moments.
8th grade JV: Abby Parker beat the buzzer with a running layup, set up by a steal and pass from Shelby Montoya, to salvage a 4-4 tie.
Yes, a tie, as middle school JV teams don’t play overtime. This is not soccer and the rule blows, frankly.
7th grade JV: Montoya scored Coupeville’s only bucket in an 8-2 loss.
7th grade varsity: A wild rally fell just short for the Wolves.
Trailing 12-7 midway through the fourth, Coupeville ripped off six straight to retake the lead.
Lindsey Roberts hit back-to-back pressure-packed buckets in front of parents (and former CHS hoops stars) Jon and Sherry Roberts, before Hope Lodell drilled the go-ahead jumper.
Unfortunately, that was the last gasp for the Wolves, as Granite put together a free-throw, a gorgeous running hook shot and a third-chance rebound to claim a 17-13 win.
Roberts paced Coupeville with eight points, while Kalia Littlejohn (3) and Lodell (2) rounded out the scorers. Sarah Wright controlled the boards all game for the Wolves.
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