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Posts Tagged ‘Hall of Fame’

She’s a happy force of nature, that one

Posted in Hall o' Fame, tagged , , , , on October 31, 2023| Leave a Comment »

“I think I’ll go buy David a hot dog and a Coke!” (Jackie Saia photo)

She does it all, and she makes it look easy.

An Energizer Rabbit of a teacher who delights her young students, who greet her in public with screams of glee.

A woman who can rock the mic at soccer games — effortlessly reeling off hard-to-say-name after harder-to-say-name — while still cutting out classroom displays without missing a beat.

Or even once going outside the lines.

The woman most likely to buy me a Coke and a hot dog at games.

In other words, a saint.

Part of the trio which really runs Coupeville athletics, no matter what the titles on the office doors may say.

The only person I know to have “gone streaking,” AKA going for a run, for 1,617 days straight and counting.

Her name is Christi Messner, or, as Wolf spiker Katie Marti refers to her, “MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM.”

Youngest daughter of Paul and Marilyn Messner, lil’ sister to Barbi Ford and Aimee Bishop, friend to all, she is the glue which holds Wolf Nation together.

The Mighty Messner women — (l to r) Christi Messner, Barbi Ford, Aimee Bishop — are the true power behind the throne. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

I mean seriously, is there any problem Christi can’t solve?

Any room she can’t brighten up with an appearance?

I vote no, because she is the sunshine who sweeps away a foggy day on the prairie.

The slightly sarcastic straight shooter who impresses me every day.

Whether she’s rolling her eyes as her daughter sprawls across the press box table wanting to know if we all want to be in her BeReal, or being the driving force behind the car wash which got us over the line to fund the Athletic Trainer position, Christi is a quiet force of nature.

She’s a strong, independent woman raising a strong, independent daughter, but also part of a tight-knit group of like-minded Wolf Moms.

Which is probably why Katie is the same with her own pack of student/athletes.

Those are traits which come down from Christi’s mom, Marilyn, and something you can see in all the many Messner women.

Hanging out with mom. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

There is a version of Cow Town sports that doesn’t include the clan, with all its offshoots and added-on family members, but that’s a version which would represent our darkest timeline.

I choose to embrace the current reality and consider Cow Town blessed to have Christi and her family in it.

And that’s why today, as she’s probably doing 10,001 things (at the same time) and keeping everything (and everyone) clicking along, I’m taking a moment to tip my bottle of Coke her way.

She might not have bought me this one, but it can symbolically stand in for all the ones she has lobbed my way.

We’re flinging open the doors of the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame and inducting Christi Messner into the “Contributor” wing of our lil’ digital shrine to excellence.

After this you can find her hanging out at the top of the blog, under the Legends tab.

Or you can track her down in real life and tell her, “You’re awesome, Christi!”

Maybe even buy her a Coke of her own as you do so.

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Big talent, big results

Posted in Boys Soccer, Cross Country, Hall o' Fame, Track, tagged , , , , , on September 8, 2023| 1 Comment »

Aidan Wilson was a multi-sport star at Coupeville High School. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Aidan Wilson is a jack of all trades, and a master of most of them.

The rare athlete who seemingly could do it all, the Coupeville High School Class of 2023 grad excelled in track and field, soccer, and cross country, putting together one of the best prep careers ever crafted by a Wolf.

Spring seemed to bring out the best in the lanky speed demon, as he participated in a mind-boggling 16 events as a track star, collecting 41 wins across three seasons.

Wilson brought home five state meet medals, earning three 2nd place finishes, and capped his career by placing 7th out of 32 in a two-day, 10-event decathlon featuring competitors from every classification.

Striding to success at a big-time meet. (Bob Martin photo)

One of only eight Wolf boys to earn as many as five state meet medals, it’s likely he would have gone higher on that list if real-world issues hadn’t intruded.

The pandemic erased all spring sports when Wilson was a freshman.

While competition returned the next spring, the state meet was cancelled as track officials limited how far schools could travel in the Age of Coronavirus.

But once he got a chance to shine on the big state, Wilson made his mark in short order.

That was his normal operating style, as he tore up the course in his one season as a cross country runner, while raining down goals on the soccer pitch.

Wilson rattled the net for 10 goals as a senior, earning All-Conference First-Team honors, and finished his prep career with 13 scores, putting him #6 on Coupeville’s all-time boys’ soccer scoring chart.

Off to score another goal. (Morgan White photo)

A nimble athlete with quick reflexes, he also did some time as a goaltender, holding off rival teams from scoring, while sacrificing a chance to add to his own goal totals.

When it all ended, Wilson brought home one of his school’s big athletic honors, receiving the Cliff Gillies Award as a senior.

Named in honor of a longtime Executive Director of the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association, it goes to athletes for “outstanding scholarship, citizenship, and participation in school activities.”

Hanging out with fellow senior booters (l to r) Grant Steller, Cameron Epp, and Reiley Araceley. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Student/athletes come and go as the seasons unfold, and a relative few are likely to stand the test of time and be remembered in vivid detail years later.

I believe Wilson will be one of those whose exploits will live on in the memories of fellow players, coaches, and fans.

But he doesn’t need to wait to be acknowledged as one of the greats – we can do that today while his time at CHS is still fresh in all of our minds.

Swing open the door to the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame, because we’re welcoming Wilson to our lil’ digital shrine to athletic excellence.

After this, you’ll find him at the top of the blog, under the Legends tab, enshrined for his accomplishments in the red and black, and the way he approached his sports.

Wilson exuded talent, but he also put in the work, day after day, competition after competition, and he earned his spot atop the mountain.

A job well done.

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Work hard, dominate every day

Posted in Boys Basketball, Football, Hall o' Fame, Track, tagged , , , , , on September 5, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Dominic Coffman will run over you, not around you. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Ka-Chunk!

It is the sound I most associate with Dominic Coffman, as he chose to frequently run over, and not around, would-be tacklers on the football field.

During his time reppin’ the black and red for the Wolves, the 2023 Coupeville High School grad piled up his fair share of yards and touchdowns, and he did it by living up to the standard set by the program’s premier running back, Ian Barron.

Like the man who holds every school record associated with rushing, Coffman chose violence, and left a trail of battered and bruised rivals in his wake.

Fancy cuts are fine, sprinting for the sideline, then dodging a tackler to step out of bounds can be effective.

The Dominator, like Barron, was content to leave those moves to others, however.

Give him the damn football and get out of the way.

During his stellar senior season, when he captured Northwest 2B/1B League MVP honors while sparking Coupeville football to its first league title and trip to state in three-decades-plus, Coffman got most of his yards AFTER impact.

It took multiple tacklers to wrestle him to the ground on most carries, and if your grip slipped for a second, you were likely on your back, watching him inflict more carnage downfield.

Not that Coffman was a one-hit wonder.

He also had sticky fingers when it came to catching passes, and was a hellion on defense, steam erupting from his body on fall nights as he scared the bejesus out of rival QB’s.

The 2022 edition of Wolf football can make an argument as the best in program history — though 1990 will want a word — and Coffman, teamed with Scott Hilborn, Tim Ursu, Daylon Houston, and a host of others, were the senior core.

Enjoying Senior Night with his family. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

A leader on and off the field, Coffman was rewarded with an invitation to the Earl Barden Classic, the state all-star game for small-school standouts, and he made his presence felt while lining up with a who’s who of gridiron giants.

Now the game is carrying him to Spain, where he will be suiting up for a semi-pro team playing American football.

They will know him soon, by the bruises he inflicts.

As intense as he can be on the football field, Coffman is a fairly soft-spoken dude off of the gridiron, and has always struck me as an intelligent, well-spoken young man.

The first time I came into contact with him was when, as a middle schooler, he informed me that if I had any photos of him playing sports, I should send them to him.

Younger, but already intense. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

After that, we spoke at a tennis match where he was camped out as a fan, and I couldn’t help but come away impressed with him.

He was that kid who grew up loving sports, not in a small way, but in a BIG way.

More than one coach told me stories about him having to be chased inside by teachers as he got every last second of enjoyment out of recess.

I once got detention for purposefully ignoring the bell, and continuing to play basketball — in a driving rainstorm — so I know where Dominic comes from.

As good a football player as he is, he was absolutely what a small-town school needs, playing three sports and playing them well.

On the basketball court, he played like a heat-seeking missile, fighting for rebounds and loose balls like a younger version of Dennis Rodman, while being the loudest member of the Wolf support crew.

Coffman was part of a boys’ basketball team which went 16-0 in the regular season and came dangerously close to toppling top-ranked Kalama at the state tournament.

In fact, he went to the big dance in all three of his sports, also making the trek twice in track and field, while qualifying in both the 4 x 100 relay and high jump both times.

Working with his relay teammates, Coffman brought home a pair of 2nd place medals, helping spur the Wolves to impressive team finishes.

Capping his senior season by shining at the state track meet. (Elizabeth Bitting photo)

As he prepares to head to Spain, let’s take a moment to hail Coffman.

For the high school athletic career he put together, excelling season after season in multiple sports while retaining his joy and drive through difficult times in the world.

And, for always being That Guy — a class act who combined drive and desire, hard work and a refusal to back down, into being one of the most-distinctive student/athletes to ever walk the CHS hallways.

Soon the world will know, but we knew first.

Which is why we’re the first to honor him, but probably not the last.

Today Dominic Coffman throws open the door to the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame, joining fellow Wolf football legends like Ian Barron and Paul Messner, Brad Haslam and Brad Sherman in our lil’ digital shrine.

After this, you’ll find The Dominator up at the top of the blog, under the Legends tab, a fitting testament to a dude who never, ever quit working.

The Dominator. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

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Talented and tough, and always a winner

Posted in Girls Basketball, Hall o' Fame, Volleyball, tagged , , , , on March 11, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Alita Blouin, talented and tough. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

She’s one tough young woman.

Coupeville High School senior Alita Blouin has natural athletic talent, a strong inner drive, and a rock-solid support crew in her family and friends.

But what has always impressed me over the years, as she has gone from the world of youth sports to high school games, is her toughness.

Not that she goes out and slugs rival players in the face or anything like that — though maybe don’t get between Alita and a loose ball or you just might taste her elbow.

A shooter supreme. (Andrew Williams photo)

Alita’s toughness comes in several forms.

One, in being able to fight back through injuries, whether it’s a busted ankle or a balky back.

Nothing keeps Alita down for long, and, each time, she returns to the floor just as committed and just as scrappy.

But her toughness also shines through in how she approaches each aspect of being an athlete.

Some players bring effort in games. Others turn up the intensity in practice.

Few have been as competitive in warmups as Alita, however.

Way back, a long time ago — OK, it was during her 8th grade volleyball season — I wrote about a small, but very important, moment I noticed during pregame exercises.

As CMS went through warm-ups before a volleyball match, the spikers started to run laps around the floor.

Alita, a team captain, was out in front, serious and locked-in. No coasting.

At which point, one of her teammates, Lucy Tenore, who is considerably taller, and has a much-longer stride, tried to pass her friend.

Alita was not playing that. At all.

Lucy, smile growing bigger and bigger, tried a second time, then a third, but couldn’t get by.

That’s because Alita, legs pumping, elbows ever at the alert, fended off her teammate at every turn, her face locked in a death mask of concentration.

Lucy, fully laughing at this point, finally relented, only to see Alita kick it up a notch to a sprinter’s run to finish the final curve, one eye looking over her shoulder just in case anyone else wanted to get foolish.

June and Shawn’s daughter brought that same intensity to the floor every night as she played volleyball and (when her body allowed it) basketball.

Hanging out with the parental units. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

As a libero, Alita was invaluable, capable of filling up the stat sheet, but worth far more to the Wolves as a leader, joining Maddie Georges at the forefront of the CHS attack.

The duo earned a major honor at the end of their prep volleyball careers, invited to play in the 1B/2B/1A All-State games.

It was a fitting reward, and a testament to what both brought to the Wolf spiker program.

In a perfect world, Alita would have been able to suit up for Coupeville’s basketball team all four years.

While injuries prevented that, with a broken ankle suffered during pregame player introductions her junior season a nasty surprise, when she was on the floor, she made the net jump like few others.

Alita can rain down three-balls from anywhere on the floor, yet also showed a willingness to slice through the paint and tangle with the tall trees camped around the basket.

She was only on the floor for 23 high school hoops games — two as a junior before the injury, and 21 as a senior — yet still rattled the rims for 215 points.

That puts Alita #56 on the all-time CHS girls scoring chart, for a program launched in 1974, and her 204 points this past season marks the first time a Wolf girl topped 200 in a season since 2016.

Toss in appearances on the honor roll, and the fact she was elected Homecoming Queen as a senior, and Ryan’s big sister has left a substantial mark on her soon-to-be alma mater.

Royalty, on and off the court. (Angie Downes photo)

Talent, toughness, inner drive — Alita has it all, and wherever she goes after high school, one thing is for certain. She will be a winner at anything she does.

Now, as she and her classmates work their way towards graduation, let’s take a moment to bestow another honor on her.

Today, in a move which you could see coming a long, long time ago — at about the moment she hip-checked Lucy Tenore into the stands — we welcome Alita Blouin to the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame.

After this, you’ll find her hanging out at the top of the blog under the Legends tab, a fitting destination.

When entering the digital shrine, however, don’t try and pass Alita.

Cause she don’t play that.

“You can compete with me. You can’t beat me!” (Brian Vick photo)

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Serene yet fiery, a team player always

Posted in Girls Basketball, Hall o' Fame, Volleyball, tagged , , , , on February 28, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Maddie Georges, the best at what she does. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Maddie Georges always sets others up for success.

Across her four-year run as a varsity high school athlete, the Coupeville senior has always put team first.

Part of it is the positions she plays — setter in volleyball and point guard in basketball.

But Georges rises above the constraints of her role, putting her own distinctive spin on each play, each game, each season.

Like others from her generation, she didn’t get her full time on the floor, as a worldwide pandemic carved away games and practice time.

Instead of focusing on what could have been, though, or complaining about also having to fight through injuries, Georges seized every moment she was given.

An All-State volleyball player and an All-League basketball star, she proved to be one of the best to ever wear a Wolf uniform.

Facing off with high-powered La Conner, Georges won this tip battle. (Jackie Saia photo)

On the volleyball court Georges flicked passes left, right, forward, and over her shoulder, mixing up her set-ups to keep the defense always on edge.

What she didn’t do was confuse her own teammates, as she almost always placed her big hitters into position to spray kills, slicin’ ‘n dicin’ hapless rivals.

Coupeville’s primary stumbling block the past couple of seasons has been La Conner, which has collected four straight 2B state titles.

Few teams have toppled the Braves, but, led by Georges, the Wolves came as close as any Northwest 2B/1B League program.

Regardless of the score or opponent, Coupeville’s primary setter never conceded a point, keeping the offense flowing while also racking up great gobs o’ service aces, and even a few kills when the moment dictated.

Georges put a bow on her high school volleyball career by joining Wolf teammate Alita Blouin at the All-State event after her senior season, following in the footsteps of older brother Alex Evans, an All-State baseball player back in the day.

Sharing All-State honors with Alita Blouin. (Suzan Georges photo)

On the basketball court Georges was a cold-blooded assassin, capable of drilling three-balls from all angles, while also a master at crashing to the hoop for hard-earned buckets.

She finished her hardwood run as the #24 scorer in CHS girls’ hoops history, rattling the rim for 407 points.

And yet, if Georges was a bit greedier, she could have been much higher on the list, which launched in 1974.

It’s to her credit that she never simply accepted life as a gunner, however.

Put in charge of Coupeville’s offensive attack, Georges was a largely pass-first player, always looking to get others involved and keep the defense guessing.

A strong passer, a deceptively talented rebounder, and a master at drawing offensive charges after scrambling back into position, she played the complete game, making her team far better for it.

Everyone enjoys hearing the ball splash through the net, but the smart player, the complete player, knows when to rain down shots, and when to sacrifice for the growth of the team.

Georges, always, was the smart player.

Putting a cap on a stellar prep hoops career. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

As she wraps up her high school days, putting a final stamp on academic life this spring, Georges should be in the mix when the school tallies its Athlete of the Year votes from coaches.

Before then, though, let’s take a moment to give her a different honor.

With no spring sports on her schedule, now is a perfect time to welcome the selfless one to the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame.

After this, when you slide past the Legends tab at the top of the blog, that’s where you’ll find Georges, fulfilling a destiny I foretold years ago.

A mere young gun, but already a hardwood killer. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

From her days as a precocious young star to her time as a seasoned vet, she has been at the forefront of Coupeville athletics seemingly since her arrival in the world as a baby already rockin’ legendary red hair.

Georges was a softball sensation during her little league days, and could have been a tennis ace, if she had ever given in to my pleas.

But that’s neither here nor there.

Celebrate Maddie for what she chose to accomplish, and how she chose to reach those goals.

Serene on the outside, even when rolling massive side eye at her fan section from time to time, but fiery on the inside, with a burning passion which few can match, she is a great example to young athletes coming up behind her.

Play for the name on the front of the jersey and walk away at the end knowing you truly gave everything you had.

Every school, every town, every team needs a Maddie Georges, but you don’t always get what you deserve.

We did, as Coupeville hit the jackpot with her.

She’s something special, both as an athlete and a young woman, and I hope she knows what a positive impact she made.

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