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Posts Tagged ‘Joey Lippo’

Skyy and Joey Lippo.

Skyy and Joey Lippo.

The next wave of Wolf athletic stars are on their way.

In less than two weeks, a new school year will kick off in Coupeville, with CHS being deluged with a fresh crop of ninth graders.

A lot of them will be intent on proving they can build new legends to replace the ones left behind by the stars of yesterday.

One duo that could be at the forefront of the new renaissance are celebrating a joint birthday today, and, in way of getting in good with them BEFORE they hit the big time, we send out our best wishes.

Skyy and Joey Lippo are multi-talented threats, but one field calls each of them the most.

For Joey, who will be trying his hand at tennis this fall, it’s being one of the boys of summer.

He’s a sweet-swingin’, slick-fieldin’ baseball star who has excelled on whatever team he ends up reppin’. Central or North Whidbey, the clothes don’t matter, cause the talent shines through.

This spring, he’ll be in red and black, trying to follow in the footsteps of recent Wolf stars like Ben Etzell and Morgan Payne, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he makes an immediate impact.

His sister, though, may be the brightest shining star in the family, as she has already scored in one of the toughest fields there is — the art of the dance.

No one is going to call ballet a sport, but everyone should acknowledge that it’s tougher to pull off than 97.4% of what are called sports.

The hours of hard work, sweat and sheer freakin’ pain dancers like Skyy or CHS junior Sylvia Hurlburt put in on the stage is remarkable. And, unlike most athletes, they have to smile through it all.

So, as the Lippo kids prepare for their entrance into the spotlight (with dad Joe live-tweeting the whole way), take a moment to send well wishes their way.

Then, maybe, just maybe, they’ll remember us “little people” when they hit the Big Time.

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The Eck brothers. (Teresa Besaw photo)

The Eck brothers. (Teresa Besaw photo)

The dream lives on. It just took a detour.

After suffering a 15-0 rout to Ferndale in the championship game of the district playoffs Thursday, the Oak Harbor Babe Ruth baseball squad will take a second crack at punching its ticket to the state tourney Friday.

The Wildcats, who feature five Coupeville Middle School players (Hunter Smith, Jake Pease, Ty Eck, Joey Lippo, Gabe Eck) can still advance to Spokane for the July 8-11 championships with a win over Burlington.

Oak Harbor has swept all of its previous games this season from Burlington, which eliminated #1 seed Friday Harbor.

Riding a hot streak entering the district final, Oak Harbor got a rude awakening from Ferndale, which jumped on ‘Cat pitchers for eight runs in the first inning.

They turned the game into a blowout and invoked the ten-rule rule after sending seven more runners across the plate in the fifth inning.

Smith and Lippo teamed with Oak Harbor’s Corey Roberts on the mound, absorbing the loss.

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Hunter

Hunter Smith prepares to go ballistic on another pitcher. (Charlotte Smith photos)

The Oak Harbor Babe Ruth team, which includes five Coupeville Middle School players. (Charlotte Smith photos)

 The Oak Harbor Babe Ruth team, which includes five Coupeville Middle School players.

The “Battle of the Harbors” ended with a magnificent meltdown.

At least if you were an Oak Harbor fan, that is.

Friday Harbor’s pitcher lost the ability to get the ball over the plate at the worst possible moment Wednesday, plunking three hitters in a row as he tried to hold a one-run lead in the seventh.

That was just the beginning, as a string of walks allowed the Wildcat Babe Ruth baseball squad to turn a 2-1 deficit into a somewhat unexpected 8-2 romp and a berth in the championship game of the district tourney.

Oak Harbor, which features five players from Coupeville, will face Ferndale 5:30 PM Thursday at Rotary Park in Burlington with a chance to punch its ticket to next month’s state championships.

Win, and they’re guaranteed a trip to Spokane for the July 8-11 tournament. Lose, and they’ll get another game.

The top two teams from this district advance to state, but, even if things suddenly go disastrously wrong for the ‘Cats and they lose two straight, they could still get in as a wild card team.

Even hard-core fans are a little confused by the last possibility.

“I don’t understand it,” said team dad (and hockey buff) Joe Lippo. “It’s more confusing than World Cup!”

Continue to keep their hot streak alive and the ‘Cats won’t have to bother about point differential, however. Win and you’re in.

One of Oak Harbor’s Central Whidbey imports kicked things off with a bang against Friday Harbor, which was the #1 seed.

Hunter Smith led off the game and whacked a shot under the fence for a ground rule double. He came around to score shortly after on a deep sac fly off the bat of teammate Corey Roberts.

Then, the runs came to a screeching halt for Oak Harbor.

Down by one entering the top of the seventh and final inning, the ‘Cats needed a miracle. And they found more than one.

Coupeville’s Gabe Eck chipped a single to right, then Will Danielson added his own hit.

Kamryn Mebane hit a wicked shot right back at the pitcher, who juggled it before getting Mebane at first.

That was enough for the fleet-footed Eck to sprint home with the tying run, setting up the possibility of extra innings.

They weren’t necessary, however, because Mebane’s smash apparently rattled the Friday Harbor pitcher big time.

Thomas Anderson reached on an error, and Coupeville’s Joey Lippo walked, juicing the bags. Then the dam broke, one bad pitch at a time.

Three Oak Harbor hitters in a row were plunked, breaking the tie. After that, Friday Harbor stopped putting its pitches into the ribs of ‘Cat hitters, but walked another three runs home before getting out of the inning.

Thoroughly deflated, Friday Harbor went down quietly in the bottom of the seventh, sealing the win for Whidbey’s finest.

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Hunter Smith (right), with siblings CJ, a baseball star for CHS, and Scout.

Hunter Smith (right), with siblings CJ, a baseball star for CHS, and Scout.

Hunter Smith swung a big bat Tuesday.

Pounding a three-run triple, then coming around to score when the ensuing throw went wild, the Coupeville Middle School baseball star sparked his Oak Harbor Babe Ruth squad to an 8-2 win in their district playoff opener.

Powered by Smith and CMS schoolmates Joey Lippo and Gabe Eck, the ‘Cats had little trouble polishing off Burlington.

Now comes the big challenge, as Oak Harbor advances to play top-seeded Friday Harbor Wednesday.

Win the “Battle of the Harbors” and Ferndale awaits on Thursday.

Against Burlington, the ‘Cats benefited from Smith’s huge swing and from a stellar start on the mound from Chris Trisler.

Lippo cracked Oak Harbor’s first hit, one of two he collected in the game, while Eck snared several key catches in right.

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Joey LIppo (left) and James Besaw. (Teresa Besaw photo)

Joey Lippo (left) and James Besaw. (Teresa Besaw photos)

Andrew Eaton (left) and Kamren Mebane.

Andrew Eaton (left) and Kamren Mebane.

Sparked by strong defensive play from its Coupeville contingent, the Oak Harbor Babe Ruth baseball squad rolled to its sixth straight win Thursday.

The Wildcats earned a sweep in their two-game series against Anacortes, bouncing their foes 7-3.

James Besaw and Andre Eaton combined on the mound for the win and greatly benefited from the slick glove work shown behind them.

Oak Harbor turned two double plays — the first going from Thomas Anderson to Wolf Joey Lippo to Kamren Mebane, while the second was kicked off by Wolf shortstop Hunter Smith snagging a line drive.

Josh Margraff capped the web gems by pulling off a spectacular sliding catch in right field to close the fifth.

Besaw, who was making his first start, went the first two innings, then turned the ball over to Eaton. Coupeville’s Jake Pease caught both of them, anchoring the team from behind the plate.

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