CHS senior Katrina McGranahan signed a letter of intent Tuesday to play softball for Everett Community College. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)
McGranahan was already a slugger back in her Little League days.
Catching some Z’s with fellow Wolf softball star Lauren Rose on another long road trip. (Justine McGranahan photos)
McGranahan puts pen to paper Tuesday during a signing ceremony which attracted a strong turnout of friends, family and fellow Wolf athletes.
McGranahan is joined by CHS softball teammates (l to r) Sarah Wright, Melia Welling, Scout Smith, Kyla Briscoe and Hope Lodell.
Killer Kat is taking her talents to Everett.
Coupeville High School senior softball standout Katrina McGranahan signed a letter of intent Tuesday and will join the Everett Community College sluggers next spring.
“This was the school she wanted and liked the best,” said CHS softball coach/dad Kevin McGranahan.
His daughter agreed, pointing to Everett’s proximity with Whidbey and the chance to be part of a tight-knit group as big factors in her choice.
“Everett has a great family atmosphere,” Katrina McGranahan said. “Every softball team I’ve been on has felt like a family, and I can’t wait to join the EvCC softball family.
“Everett is also really close to home; I am able to come back when I want,” she added. “Which is a plus! Because I would love to come back and support not only the (CHS) softball team but the volleyball team as well.
“Everett gives me the opportunity to continue my softball career and I couldn’t be more thankful.”
Before she pulls on a college uniform, the reigning Olympic League MVP has one more crack at leading her high school squad to the state tourney.
Coupeville, which fell just a single strike short of punching its ticket to the big dance in 2017, returns virtually every starter this spring.
Leading the way is McGranahan, who is a double threat, whipping strikes from the pitcher’s circle and thumping the heck out of the ball at the plate.
As a junior she went 18-5 as a pitcher, earning a save in the only game where she didn’t notch the decision.
McGranahan tossed 140 strikeouts in 144 innings of work, with 19 complete games, a no-hitter and a sparkling 1.56 ERA.
At the plate, she hit .524, piling up 33 hits, 34 runs and 37 RBI. That included five home runs, five triples and three doubles.
A two-sport star, McGranahan was also a league MVP during her junior volleyball season and was a major part of the Wolves winning back-to-back conference titles her final two seasons.
As a senior, she helped the CHS spikers return to the state tourney for the first time since 2004.
A serene superstar, a quiet leader who lets her skills do the talking, McGranahan shared Coupeville High School Female Athlete of the Year honors in 2016-2017 with Valen Trujillo.
McGranahan will be the second Wolf to make the jump to EvCC in recent years, as former Coupeville slugger Hailey Hammer just wrapped up a two-year run at first base for the Trojans.
Seeing his daughter prepare to strike out on her own, while pursuing her life-long love of softball, is big for Kevin McGranahan.
“From her father’s perspective – I am extremely proud of her and excited for her opportunity to play at the collegiate level,” he said. “She has put in a lot of her own time during the off-season to make herself and her teams better and achieve her dream to play at the next level.
“I feel like it was only yesterday she picked up a softball for the first time and I saw her fall in love with the game,” Kevin McGranahan added. “No matter what happens from here I couldn’t be more proud of her.”
Having coached his daughter from little league through high school, Kevin McGranahan is justifiably proud of how she has grown during her time on the diamond.
“Katrina has always been there for her team and has done everything she can to help the team succeed,” he said. “She has a natural athletic ability that has been a pleasure to coach and mold her into the athlete and person she is today.
“Softball has always been her passion. To see her achieve her goal is awesome,” Kevin McGranahan added. “Incoming freshmen and future Coupeville softball players should understand the commitment and off-season work that goes into making yourself the best you can be.
“Softball doesn’t end, the season comes and goes, but it is a year-long sport just like any other, and if you put in the work you will see the results.”
When Katrina transitions to the college game, her dad will change roles.
“I am excited to just be dad next year and get to watch from the sideline,” Kevin McGranahan said.
“Of course, once a coach always a coach, and it will be hard to not try to coach her after the games,” he added with a laugh.
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