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Posts Tagged ‘home opener’

Another game, another lesson for diamond men

Posted in Baseball, tagged , , , , on March 16, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Bryce Payne scores his first run Saturday, joining older brothers Morgan and Cole as “made men” for CHS baseball. (Joan Payne photo)

The youngest brother is a made man.

Coupeville High School senior Bryce Payne, in his first season with the Wolves, walked and came around to score Saturday, one of the bright spots in a 13-1 loss to visiting Overlake.

While the non-league defeat drops the Wolves to 0-2 as they prepare to head into their first league series, small things like quality work from Coupeville’s pitchers and the identity of the player who scored the lone Wolf run, made the day better.

Bryce follows in the footsteps of older brothers Morgan and Cole, both four-year players, and his first run in a Wolf uniform means the Paynes are one of the few families to have three different players score in a CHS varsity baseball game.

I’m pretty sure there’s a couple of others, probably with names like Zylstra, Cook, or Keefe, but I can’t say for sure, as Coupeville’s baseball history is scattered across many long-missing score books and lineup cards.

Either way, the Paynes are surely in an elite fraternity now, and that’s pretty special.

Overlake, a ritzy private academy, came out firing Saturday, putting up three runs in the top of the first, then adding another seven during a 12-batter second inning.

Their hosts had a few chances to score, most noticeably in their half of the first, but the Wolves couldn’t plate a runner until the bottom of the fifth (and final) inning.

After the first two CHS hitters went down in the bottom of the first, the Wolves juiced the bags on a single from Jake Pease, an error which allowed Dane Lucero to scamper to first, and a walk to Ulrik Wells.

Coupeville fans leaned forward in their seats, anticipating a possible big explosion, but it wasn’t to be as Overlake’s pitcher escaped the jam with an inning-ending strikeout.

After that, the Wolf offense hit a bit of a wall for awhile, going one-two-three the next two innings.

A fourth-inning single from Gavin Knoblich snapped the dry spell, then Coupeville loaded the bases again in the bottom of the fifth.

Walks to Payne, Hawthorne Wolfe, and Pease put a runner atop every bag, before Payne made a mad dash home to score on a passed ball.

Any hopes of an epic comeback withered on the vine, however, as a ground-out to the Overlake shortstop brought the game to an end.

While he’s always looking for a win, Coupeville coach Chris Smith knows he has a young, fairly inexperienced team on his hands, after losing a large class to graduation.

Improvement, in big and small ways, is job #1.

“Pretty happy with our pitching so far,” Smith said. “We had Dane, Hawk and Matt (Hilborn) throw yesterday and Daniel (Olson), Cody (Roberts), and Matt throw today. Pitching has been doing a pretty good job overall.

“And we have been doing a decent job getting on base,” he added. “We just need to get some timely hitting to put some crooked numbers on the scoreboard.”

Coupeville wades into the start of league play next week, and gets to face the biggest and baddest of them all, Cedar Park Christian, early.

The Eagles, who lost 7-4 to 3A Juanita in their only game this season, finished second at the 1A state tourney in 2017, then followed that up with a 4th place showing in 2018.

The teams meet three times next week, playing Monday and Friday in Bothell, while clashing Wednesday in Coupeville.

After that, the Wolves face their final three non-conference foes, Chimacum, University Prep, and Friday Harbor, before playing 12 games against league foes King’s, South Whidbey, Sultan, and Granite Falls.

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Bring the noise! Bring the joy!!

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , , , on December 1, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Ethan Spark scored a game-high 21 Friday, netting five three-point bombs in a Wolf win. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

“They want it pretty bad.”

As he basked in the glow of his first win as a varsity basketball coach Friday, Brad Sherman wanted to make one thing clear — in his eyes, all the credit goes to his players.

Having inherited a senior-heavy roster, the former Coupeville High School hoops star has unleashed the current Wolves on defense, and it’s paying immediate dividends.

Harassing visiting Mount Vernon Christian every inch of the floor, CHS turned a close game into a rout in the second half, then coasted home with a 49-37 win.

The non-conference victory evens Coupeville’s record at 1-1.

The Wolves got strong offensive work from Ethan Spark and Hunter Smith, who combined to score 41 of their team’s 49 points, but it was defense which turned the tide in this one.

The kind of defense where it looked like five rabid dogs attacking as one, poking passes, rejecting shots, forcing turnovers and mental errors and being a royal pain in the tush to anyone unlucky enough to be wearing a Hurricanes uniform.

“I really liked our intensity on defense,” Sherman said. “We were flying all over the place, applying ball pressure and closing down the passing lanes, just making it very hard for the other team to run any kind of offense.”

Coupeville’s starting five – Smith, Spark, Cameron Toomey-Stout, Joey Lippo and Hunter Downes – are all seniors, and have yet to see a Wolf boys hoops squad post a winning record during their tenure.

Friday night, those recent struggles seemed far away, though, as the Wolves fed off a boisterous crowd, and vice versa.

There were times, with the joint rocking, where the excitement level hit the kind of highs it did back when Sherman and his classmates were soaring to success in the early 2000’s.

Whether it was Lippo rising up to reject a shot, Downes swinging his elbows while rebounding, begging any fool to get too close, or Spark making off with steals, the Wolves were in shut-down mode.

And that was most evident when Smith and Toomey-Stout, All-Conference defensive backs on the football fields, continually broke up passes in mid-sprint.

Even when they didn’t get an outright steal, balls were repeatedly jarred free and MVC, which had a distinct height advantage, got more and more gun shy and frustrated.

Adding to their intensity on defense, the Wolves chose the right moment to showcase their offensive attack, closing each of the first three quarters with a substantial run.

The first came after Coupeville fell behind 6-1 midway through the first quarter.

Mixing four free throws — two each from Smith and Spark — and a pair of buckets, Coupeville closed the period on an 8-2 tear, grabbing its first lead with less than a tick on the clock.

The go-ahead bucket came courtesy Lippo, who ripped a rebound free from a Hurricane, spun and rose up to swish a sweet fall-away jumper that tickled the twine with 0:00.3 to play.

The two teams traded baskets to kick off the second quarter, with MVC taking its final lead of the night at 16-14.

After that, the final three minutes of the half were a thing of beauty (if you were a CHS fan, at least).

Smith hung in the air for an impossible amount of time before hitting a jumper on his way down, before Spark … um … lit the spark with the first of what would be five three-point bombs.

Just to make sure MVC knew the jig was up, Smith rattled home his own three-ball, and, as it splatted through the net, he became only the 42nd male Wolf player (in 101 years) to reach 500 career points.

But, wait, there’s more!

Dribbling out the final seconds of the half, Smith sucked in all five defenders, who were dead certain he was driving to the hoop.

Instead, he whistled a pass right onto the fingertips of junior Dane Lucero, who banged home the quarter-capping layup for his first-ever varsity points.

If MVC went into the locker room still holding out hope, with the margin just 24-18, that vanished, hard, in the third.

Spark, who earned praise from his coach for his off-season dedication to working on his shooting, went ballistic, raining down three consecutive treys, each shot getting deeper and deeper into the darkest corner of the court.

As each ball hit, flipping the net skyward with a happy little sigh, the crowd, which has been somewhat dormant at times in recent years, went progressively more berserk.

The loudest scream might have come for two boom-boom plays to cap the third.

Downes and Smith, who combined for many a touchdown as quarterback and receiver, connected again, with Downes yanking a ball free, then lofting it three-quarters of the court.

His target caught it in perfect stride, flipped it up for a layup … then promptly stole the in-bounds pass and scored again.

With everything clicking, Coupeville stretched the lead out to as many as 18 points twice, the final one coming at 47-29 when sophomore Jacobi Pacquette-Pilgrim netted a free throw for his first varsity point.

While an 8-2 MVC run to close the game tightened the score just a bit, the Hurricanes left the court heads bowed, looking very much like a team which just got bushwhacked.

For Coupeville’s players, and its fans, the early-season win set off a celebration, and, for Sherman, a never-ending string of congratulatory handshakes.

Spark finished with 21 to pace the Wolves, while Smith popped for 20.

With 509 career points, he passed Jason Bagby (499) and David Lortz (502) Friday to move into 41st on the all-time CHS boys hoops scoring list.

Downes chipped in with three, Lippo and Lucero knocked down buckets and Pacquette-Pilgrim’s free throw capped the scoring.

While Coupeville’s seniors led the attack, sophomores Jered Brown and Gavin Knoblich also saw valuable floor time.

The Wolves now get a week to rest up, not returning to action until Friday, Dec. 8, when Sequim comes to town.

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“Tonight is why I coach!!”

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on November 29, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Mikayla Elfrank dropped in nine of her game-high 20 points Wednesday in the fourth quarter. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

“We didn’t win the score, but we won the game.”

With his team drawing energy from a vocal, enthusiastic home crowd Wednesday, David King’s Coupeville High School girls basketball squad almost pulled off a stunner.

Rallying from 15 points down, the Wolves, playing with a very limited bench, gave themselves a chance to tie the game in the final moments against 2A Blaine, a big school boasting two big six-footers.

And while the Borderites hit their free throws in the waning seconds to slip away with a 44-39 non-conference win, King walked away a happy coach.

His undermanned squad — CHS suited six players, plus picked up swing player Avalon Renninger for two quarters — never gave up or gave in.

“I was very proud of the team effort and how well they played together,” King said. “Tonight is why I coach.”

The loss, coming on the heels of one to 2A Bellingham, drops Coupeville to 0-2 headed into back-to-back games this weekend.

The Wolves host Mount Vernon Christian Friday, then travel to Langley Saturday morning to play Flinders Christian, a traveling team from Australia.

After opening the season with two straight tilts against bigger schools, the next two games will be a welcome change of pace.

Coupeville struggled in the early going against Blaine, unable to stop its bigs from slashing to the hoop.

The Borderites opened a 13-5 lead after one quarter, before eventually stretching the lead out to 14 late in the second quarter.

Up to that point, the Wolves hadn’t been able to get much going on offense, other than a three-point play the hard way from Mikayla Elfrank.

That changed in the final two minutes of the half, as sophomore Scout Smith knocked down two long jumpers (both shots were inches away from being three-balls).

Add in a gorgeous floater from Kalia Littlejohn and CHS was back in business, trailing 23-13 at the break.

Blaine was having none of this comeback business, however, and came out of the locker room ready to drive a stake through Coupeville’s heart.

A trey from the right side and two free throws to start the half stretched the lead out to 15, and it would have been easy for the Wolves to roll over and accept defeat.

Instead, after a few reassuring words from their coach, they came out of the huddle shoulders high, heads thrown back and eyes full of flame.

Battling the bigger Borderites for every board, and getting into frequent scraps on the floor while fighting for, or creating, loose balls, the Wolves ramped up the intensity and sent a bolt of electricity through the stands.

A couple of driving layups from Elfrank and a sweet turnaround jumper in the paint from Lindsey Roberts, who backed down her taller defender before spinning and firing, kicked things off.

Coupeville cut the lead to eight, gave some back, swapped three-balls, then kept on coming, finally causing Blaine to crack a bit.

With the Borderites on their heels, CHS used a 14-5 run in the fourth, with Elfrank dropping in nine of her game-high 20, to get all the way back to within 41-38.

The final bucket came courtesy Littlejohn, who banked in a runner off of a note-perfect in-bounds pass from Elfrank.

The game’s final 50 seconds were a war, as both teams clamped down on defense, the ball was knocked loose approximately 237 times and Blaine hit three of four free-throws to ice things.

Even at the end, Coupeville kept coming, though.

A final three-point shot from Elfrank skidded off the rim, but Littlejohn, all five-feet-four-inches of her, sliced between Blaine’s twin towers and ripped the rebound down, then went right back up with a roar.

Knocked silly by multiple elbows, she barely flinched, turning and striding to the free-throw line, where she calmly sank a final free throw just to let Blaine know she remained unbowed.

Elfrank topped the stat sheet, snatching seven rebounds and handing out four assists to go with her season-high 20 points.

Littlejohn chipped in with nine points, four assists and four steals, while Smith and Roberts banged away for five points apiece.

“Kalia did a really good job of being our floor general and Mikayla and Lindsey stepped up big in the second half,” King said. “They found their spark and took the ball hard to the hoop and made Blaine work for what they got.”

Coupeville’s hoops guru had praise for all seven of his players, noting the defensive intensity Allison Wenzel and Sarah Wright brought, while being matched up with taller rivals.

“They both got their hands on a lot of balls, and were in there fighting on every play,” King said.

His two sophomores, Renninger and Smith, were in their first and second varsity games, respectively, but betrayed no nerves common to younger players.

“Scout handled herself really well and looked for her shot,” King said. “Avalon, for being in her first game, showed she will learn quickly. It was good to see her be able to make the proper corrections as she played.”

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My kingdom for a lawn chair!!

Posted in Fashionable Fans, Football, tagged , , , , on September 4, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   While we wait for a new grandstand to arrive, CHS football fans should expect to sit as close together as the Wolves are in this pic. (John Fisken photo)

Patience is a virtue.

While it’s true Coupeville High School will have a new football grandstand at some point in the near future, it won’t be in place for the home opener against La Conner this Friday.

And that means fans are going to be cozy for a bit.

Once in place, the new grandstand will sit in front of the apartments on what was previously the visitors side of the field.

The ground has been prepared, concrete supports have been laid, but thanks to delays by the grandstand manufacturer, the local guys are left twiddling their thumbs.

With everything in mid-construction, that side of the field will be roped off Friday and all fans, Coupeville and non-Coupeville, get to congregate together on the far side of the field.

If you attended a game last year, you know seating on that side of the field is limited.

When the old grandstand and (bee-infested, but deeply-missed) press box were ripped out prior to the 2016 football season, two smaller sections of bleachers were moved in to form what will one day officially be the visitors stands.

For now, those bleachers and the surrounding grass and track will provide one dumping ground for home and road fans alike.

So, either arrive early (kickoff is 7 PM), bring a lawn chair or get used to standing.

One thing that could help is Coupeville’s gridiron schedule begins with four of the first six games on the road.

After facing La Conner, the Wolves welcome Charles Wright Academy to town Sept. 22, then don’t play at home again until mid-Oct.

If we’re lucky, that shiny new grandstand will be in place in time for Coupeville’s late-season three-game home-stand (Oct. 13 vs Bellevue Christian, Oct. 20 vs. Klahowya, Oct. 27 vs. Chimacum).

Hey, miracles can happen.

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Nail-biter!!

Posted in Girls Tennis, tagged , , , , , on March 16, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Valen Trujillo rolled to a 6-0, 6-1 win at first singles Thursday. (John Fisken photo)

They kept the fans on their edge of their seats.

Shuffling its roster to make up for two missing varsity players, the Coupeville High School girls’ tennis squad still came within a shot or two of upending 2A Sequim Thursday.

It wasn’t to be, however, as the visitors made off with a 4-3 win in a squeaker played under surprisingly sunny skies.

Now 0-2 on the young season, after facing two tough non-conference foes, Coupeville is slated to open defense of its Olympic League crown next week when it faces Klahowya.

Thursday, the Wolves dominated the top of the order, grabbing wins at first singles and first and second doubles.

Senior Valen Trujillo, mixing in gorgeous drop shots with powerful ground strokes, romped to a win at #1 singles, then hung around to cheer on lil’ sis Zoe as she captured her first varsity win.

Zoe teamed up with fellow frosh phenom Avalon Renninger to knock off a pair of upperclassmen at #2 doubles in a match that saw slick shot-making from both sides of the net.

It was also a match in which both teams managed to have one player on each team blast their playing partner with a shot during live action.

Trujillo pasted Renninger with a shot at the net, and, while the duo were still giggling over it, Sequim’s Ella Christiansen bopped her partner in the back of the head with a slightly-misjudged overhead.

Other than those two miscues, the battle at second doubles was just that, a battle, as both teams sprinted from side to side, saving shots that appeared to be certain winners.

In the end, though, the fast-rising freshmen, with Trujillo slicing nasty serves and Renninger dominating at the net, were too much for their foes.

Avalon wasn’t the only member of her family to win, as big sis Sage teamed up with Payton Aparicio to remain unbeaten at first doubles.

With Sequim rolling to wins at #3 and #4 doubles, as well as #3 singles, the afternoon’s most important match came at #2 singles.

Foreign exchange student Fanny Deprelle, playing her second match as a Wolf, put up a sustained fight, battling back time and again, before ultimately falling in a second-set tiebreaker.

Complete results:

Varsity:

1st singles — Valen Trujillo beat Izzy Hugenoit 6-0, 6-1

2nd singles — Fanny Deprelle lost to Katie Wake 6-4, 7-6(7-3)

3rd singles — Maggie Crimmins lost to Emily Bundy 6-1, 6-3

1st doubles — Payton Aparicio/Sage Renninger beat Hannah D’Amico/Jessica Dietzman 6-1, 7-6(7-2)

2nd doubles — Zoe Trujillo/Avalon Renninger beat Tea Guthun/Ella Christiansen 6-4, 7-5

3rd doubles — Tia Wurzrainer/Claire Mietus lost to Amanda He/Ashley Rosales 6-0, 6-1

4th doubles — Sophie Furtjes/Julie Bucio lost to Courtney Gosset/Amber Dietzman 6-0, 6-2

JV:

5th doubles — Nanci Melendrez/Rubi Melendrez lost to Sadie Woods/Kayli Prorok 6-3

6th doubles — Maggie Crimmins/Jillian Mayne lost to Chloe Goldate/Hannah D’Amico 6-1

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