Dalton Engle | Coupeville Sports

Posts Tagged ‘Dalton Engle’

Legends, one and all!!

Posted in Hall o' Fame, tagged 1A Olympic League, Amy Briscoe, Ann Pettit, CHS Wolves, Dalton Engle, Hall of Fame, Mitch Pelroy, Tom Roehl on August 30, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Ann Pettit (top, left) joins her fellow inductees (bottom, l to r) Tom Roehl, Amy Briscoe, Dalton Engle and Mitch Pelroy.

Ann Pettit (top, left) joins fellow inductees (bottom, l to r) Tom Roehl (with son Virgil), Amy Briscoe, Dalton Engle (with dad Michael) and Mitch Pelroy.

The 2014-2015 CHS varsity girls’ hoops squad. (John Fisken photos)

The 2014-2015 Wolf JV squad, which went 9-0 in league play to match the varsity.

How do you choose who goes in the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame?

Bribes. It’s all about the bribes. So start baking those chocolate chip cookies…

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, it’s time to welcome the 10th class into these hallowed digital walls, forever to live on at the top of the blog under the Legends tab.

Welcome to the stage Dalton Engle, Ann Pettit, Mitch Pelroy, Tom Roehl, Amy Briscoe and (no, it’s not too soon) the 2014-2015 Coupeville High School girls’ basketball team.

Leading us off is the most unsung of the group, the glue who helps hold Wolf athletics together, Mrs. Briscoe.

The ultimate den mother, Amy is the sort of indispensable, take no crap but love ’em all parent every school needs.

That CHS has her is a huge win.

She’s given the Wolves two talented daughters, Tiffany and Kyla, but she goes in to the Hall for the way she takes care of all of her daughters (and sons).

A fierce fighter and protector of every kid who crosses her path, Amy knows when to hug and when to put her foot between someone’s butt cheeks, and she does both with compassion and heart (and fresh baked brownies).

Wolf Nation, and its athletes, could have no finer force ‘o nature watching over them, day and night.

Joining her in entering the hall is another larger than life presence, the late Tom Roehl.

Like Amy, he spent countless hours helping the children of Coupeville.

From his years as Ron Bagby’s right-hand man with the CHS football program to the time he poured into keeping youth basketball hoppin’ in Cow Town, he gave his all.

And, while his passing left a huge hole, his family has kept his memory and his lessons alive over the years, giving out numerous scholarships in his name through their foundation.

Coach Roehl’s impact will filter down through generations to come, and it is an honor to add him to our little club.

The Wolf football program that he dedicated so much time to has produced a long list of stellar players, and two of the best in recent memory go into the Hall with him.

Engle, who followed the path set by his dad Michael, is on the school record board for the most career tackles, but it was his leadership which shone above all else.

A quiet, confident guy who led by example and never backed down on the field, he was a rock for the Wolves.

Pelroy was just as important, a zippy, highlight-reel-producing receiver and defensive back who excelled in the return game, a track star leaving would-be tacklers in his dust.

His speed, and his hard work, carried him to college, where he continues to shine for Montana Western while rockin’ the best hair in the biz.

Our fifth inductee is one of the best basketball players to ever rep the red and black. And it ain’t even close.

A two-time Offensive Player of the Year (1996, 1997) and the team’s MVP in 1998, Pettit scored in bursts and teamed with Zenovia Barron to form arguably the most dangerous one-two attack Wolf hoops has ever had.

How potent was she?

In her varsity debut as a sophomore, she entered the game in the third quarter … then ripped off 18 points.

CHS coach Willie Smith, in one of his many brilliant moves, started Pettit every game for the rest of her career.

Her brightest moment may have come during her senior season, when Coupeville upended Bellevue Christian to reach the state tourney, with Pettit shutting down BC’s Cathrine Kraayeveld (currently in her 11th season in the WNBA).

Shutting people down was the hallmark of our final inductee, last year’s Wolf girls’ basketball team.

Led by league MVP Makana Stone and a six-pack of skilled seniors, Coupeville romped to a title in the inaugural season of the 1A Olympic League, hanging the first new championship banner in the CHS gym in 13 years.

Young women who had not seen their school win a title in any sport since they were kindergartners made an epic statement, and they did it in style, winning all nine league games by 15 or more points.

Even more impressively, the Wolf JV also went 9-0, drilling Klahowya, Port Townsend and Chimacum and we are honoring the entire squad today.

For going 18-0 in league play. For sweeping away the past and kick-starting a new era, an era in which the howl of the Wolves sends shivers down the spines of other teams.

Inducted, together, as a team, the 2014-2015 CHS girls’ basketball squad:

David King (coach)
Amy King (coach)
McKenzie Bailey
Kyla Briscoe
Tiffany Briscoe
Lauren Grove
Hailey Hammer
Brisa Herrera
Kailey Kellner
Kacie Kiel
Skyler Lawrence
Mia Littlejohn
Mattea Miller
Julia Myers
Lauren Rose
Makana Stone
Madeline Strasburg
Wynter Thorne
Monica Vidoni
Allison Wenzel

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A successful Engle in Coupeville? I am shocked. Shocked, I say!!

Posted in Baseball, Boys Basketball, Football, Track, Where are they now?, tagged CHS Wolves, Dalton Engle, firefighting, football, MaryAnn Fakkema, Mike Engle on November 2, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Dalton (left) and Mike Engle, two generations of hard-hitting Wolf linebackers.

#58 in your program and #1 in your hearts.

There are some who question the emphasis placed on sports in high school.

To those people, I offer the case of Mike Engle.

Father of three, career firefighter, rock in the community he grew up in, and a kid who became a success because of the joy and positive rewards sports offered him.

“I think the best memories were my friends and sports. Sports were the one thing I put my whole heart and soul into,” Engle said. “It was the one thing I felt I was good at, and it was the one thing that gave me confidence, made me feel like I was as good as everyone else somehow.

“That’s one of the reasons I believe sports are so important for kids,” he added. “Especially the ones that struggle with academics like I did.”

The Coupeville High School Class of 1982 grad, the Athlete of the Year his senior season, remains one of the standout Wolves of all time, even 30 years after graduation.

He lettered three years in football (the only sophomore to do so), where he was a Second-Team All-Conference pick at linebacker two seasons, played basketball and baseball and went to state in track as a two-sport threat (shot put and discus).

At his graduation, he held CHS records in the shot put, discus and javelin.

Through it all, football was the sport nearest and dearest to his heart.

His senior season he had 60+ tackles through four games, before an injury cost him the rest of the season. Still, those four games were enough to net him Second-Team All-Conference, a sign opposing coaches recognized what a terror he was, even in limited duty.

“I loved the “zone” that you get into during the game,” Engle said. “Figuring out what the opposing coach was going to call, based on down and distance.

“The game against La Conner I had 17 or 18 tackles and a fumble recovery,” he added. “I loved being so focused that you didn’t hear the crowd or what quarter it was. I still get excited thinking about it.”

Living out his dreams on the gridiron gave Engle a chance to taste what life was like for the “big boys” who he had watched from afar as a kid.

“I remember when I was in junior high how cool the high schoolers seemed, i.e. the ‘jocks’,” Engle said. “There were a few (Bill Jareld, Keith Jameson) that were encouraging, which led me to believe I might have what it took to succeed.

“Other than that, I just remember my classmates/friends making it a fun year, even if we didn’t win a game,” he added.

Injuries cut short a football career at Wenatchee Valley College and Engle transitioned into teaching — getting a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education from Washington State University — before moving into full-time firefighting as a career.

Along the way, he helped to bring Coupeville and Oak Harbor together by marrying the former MaryAnn Fakkema, and the couple have had three children, daughters Erin and Miranda and middle son Dalton.

Seeing his own children take their parents athletic heritages and expand upon them has been one of the biggest blessings of his life.

Dalton followed his dad most closely, playing football with the same passion and in a “weird but cool” twist repeating his father’s twin selection as Homecoming King and Athlete of the Year as a senior.

“Watching our kids play has been awesome,” Engle said. “Of course, you always want your kid to have a lot of playing time so they can get better, but the best part is seeing the confidence increase and them get it.

“It’s hard to describe the emotion you feel when your kid makes a great play and contributes to the team,” he added. “We felt that keeping our kids active was part of being good parents, and it was a great way to spend quality time with our kids.”

If his children eclipse their dad one day, he’s fine with that. Just being remembered for his own accomplishments is enough.

“When Dalton was a freshman or sophomore, we were at a home game and I said I hope he ends up better than I was,” Engle said. “Dale Folkestad said ‘you were a hell of a linebacker, he’d do well to be as good as you were.’

“I guess that’s how I want to be remembered,” he added. “I think I just wanted to have earned any accolades. There were some good athletes at our school.”

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