Mia Farris set a personal milestone Tuesday night. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
What a difference a year makes.
After struggling mightily to contain powerhouse La Conner the last couple seasons, the Coupeville High School varsity girls’ basketball squad came dangerously close to knocking off the visiting Braves Tuesday night.
Unfortunately, a dry spell in the final minutes turned a narrow fourth-quarter lead into a worse than it sounds 46-32 loss.
The reality is that drops Coupeville to 1-3 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 5-8 overall and makes its bid for a playoff berth harder.
The Wolves, who are dueling with fellow 2B mates La Conner and Friday Harbor for two postseason slots, are 0-2 in the three-team round robin.
La Conner (3-0, 9-5) is 2-0 in the mini-rumble, while Friday Harbor (1-2, 3-10) sits at 1-1.
Coupeville gets a second crack at Friday Harbor Feb. 2 on Senior Night, then closes the regular season at La Conner Feb. 6.
The Braves and Wolverines have their rematch Feb. 9.
While CHS needs to bounce back strongly to punch a playoff ticket, their play against their two closest rivals provides plenty of hope they can.
The Wolves fell to Friday Harbor by just five points and were up 30-29 in the fourth quarter against La Conner.
The Braves hit back-to-back three-balls to pull ahead 35-30, but Mia Farris hauled in a lob from Lyla Stuurmans and slapped home a layup to get the Wolves within a shot of tying things back up.
That was where the offensive attack withered for Coupeville, however.
Katie Marti, who leads the Wolves in scoring, got body-slammed to the floor during a fight for a loose ball, and the refs forced her to spend crucial time showing Athletic Trainer Jessy Hillier where it hurt.
Which was likely everywhere.
While the rough-and-tumble heart-and-soul of the Wolves returned to the floor, ready to unleash heck on anyone in her way, the incident threw a wrench into Coupeville’s flow.
La Conner, which has a roster full of quick, deadly youngsters who fly around the floor and attack from all angles, took advantage, running out the game on an 11-0 spurt.
Other than the final rally, the game was a nip-and-tuck affair all night.
Four different Wolves scored in the opening quarter, with Teagan Calkins slipping a pair of free throws through the twines to stake CHS to an 8-6 lead at the first break.
Don’t let the smile fool you. Teagan Calkins will break you in half on the hardwood. (Photo by CHS Yearbook Staff)
While Calkins scored last in the period, teammate Madison McMillan offered up the sweetest shot, nailing a jumper off of an inbounds pass, the ball slamming through the bottom of the net like it had been smashed by a hammer.
La Conner swished a trio of three-balls in the second quarter, but Coupeville delivered its own highlight reel-worthy shots to force a 19-19 tie at the break.
Farris drained a pair of silky jumpers, while Marti twirled through the paint like a ballerina run amuck, tossing up an impossibly tough hook shot that bounced just right and plopped through the rim.
Just the way she intended it.
The third quarter was punch and counter punch, with the squads trading the lead, only to come right back to where they started — tied up.
Marti, proving there is no shot she can’t hit, kissed a three-ball off the glass, the ball banking home and hitting paydirt with a happy little sigh to open the frame.
Closing it with conviction, the Wolves got free throws from Calkins and Stuurmans, and the scoreboard twinkled 28-28 as the fourth quarter dawned.
Coupeville’s final lead came at 30-29, when Stuurmans, using every one of her inches, stretched way out to deposit a swooping layup that just barely cleared a defender’s hands.
Six of the seven Wolves to play scored, while freshman Haylee Armstrong flew off the bench to provide a spark while Marti was being tended to after her collision with the hard, cold, unforgiving floor.
Farris and Calkins popped for eight points apiece to pace the attack, with Marti (7), Stuurmans (5), McMillan (2), and Jada Heaton (2) also scoring.
With her burst, Farris moves into the top 100 career scorers in CHS girls’ hoops history.
Heading into a home game Friday against Mount Vernon Christian, the Wolf sophomore is #97 all-time with 119 points and counting.
Farris joins Stuurmans (#71 with 174 points) and Marti (#81 with 159 points) among active players in the top 100.
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