Kailey Kellner (left) and Lindsey Roberts combined for 14 points and 28 rebounds Friday as Coupeville won in overtime. (John Fisken photo)
It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.
Overcoming a rocky beginning, the Coupeville High School girls’ basketball squad came roaring back late Friday, turning a double-digits deficit into a wild one-point overtime win.
Pulling out a 42-41 non-conference thriller at Orcas Island, the Wolves, who hadn’t played in nine days, soared to 6-3 heading into the new year.
Coupeville, which has played seven of nine games on the road this season, will stay in road warrior mode next week, when it faces perhaps its biggest test of the season.
The Wolves, 2-0 in 1A Olympic League play, travel to Port Townsend (2-0) Tuesday and Chimacum (1-2) Friday.
As they aim to keep their 20-game league winning streak alive, the Wolves are hoping for more of how they played down the stretch Friday, and less of how they opened the game.
Coupeville, which found itself in a 18-8 hole after a rough first quarter, scraped away at the Vikings, but still trailed by seven entering the fourth.
Utilizing a strong press and crafty shot-making, CHS dominated in the final quarter of regulation, however, using a 12-5 surge to knot things up at 38 and give the fans extra action.
Coupeville got something from everyone down the stretch, with Mia Littlejohn knocking down a huge three-ball to spark things.
Lindsey Roberts scored four of her team-high 10 in the fourth, while Kailey Kellner dropped in three and both Kalia Littlejohn and Mikayla Elfrank tickled the twines on a successful free throw.
If the Wolves could have been a bit sharper from the charity stripe, there would have been no need for overtime, as CHS connected on just 11 of 26 free throws on the night.
With neither team able to deliver a knockout punch at the end of regulation, overtime beckoned.
Orcas drew first blood with a bucket, but Kalia Littlejohn immediately sliced through the Viking defense to re-tie the game with a basket of her own.
After that, neither team could hit from the field, but free throws from Mia Littlejohn (tying things at 41) and Kellner (pushing Coupeville ahead 42-41) were crucial.
Orcas had the ball and a chance to win with 2.5 ticks left on the clock, but the Wolves successfully hounded the Vikings ball handler down the sideline, preventing a final shot before time expired.
The finish was quite a turn-around from the start.
A bit rusty from the week-and-a-half break between games, and bothered by illness, the Wolves came out a step slow in the early-afternoon game.
“The first quarter continues to be a struggle for us; today was no different,” said Coupeville coach David King. “Offensively we are slowing the ball down too much and ending a possession with a rushed shot.”
Things picked up, in brief spurts at least, going forward, as the Wolves won the scoring battle in every other quarter.
A huge key was Coupeville’s team-wide defensive effort.
After giving up 18 in the first eight minutes, the Wolves steadily reduced Orcas’ scoring going forth, from eight to seven to five to a meager three in overtime.
Lauren Rose drilled a couple of key shots to set up the fourth quarter rally, while super sophomores Kalia Littlejohn and Roberts played crucial roles all night.
“Seems like this year, from game to game, we have different players stepping up on the offensive end,” King said. “Today it was Lindsey and Kalia.
“Yesterday I challenged Lindsey that the team needs her to be confident on offense and to look to score when she’s open,” he added. “Kalia is a spark plug on defense, but game after game I can see her confidence growing with handling the ball and taking the open shots.”
Eight different Wolves scored, something King loves to see.
“It was truly a team win.”
Kalia Littlejohn dropped in a season-high seven to back Roberts and her 10 points, while Mia Littlejohn (6), Rose (5), Tiffany Briscoe (4), Kellner (4), Elfrank (4) and Kyla Briscoe (2) all scored.
A huge factor in the comeback win was Coupeville’s relentless work on the boards.
Kellner snatched 15 and Roberts hauled in 13 as CHS made off with 52 caroms, including 28 on the offensive end.
“The players aren’t quitting. We talked about getting back into the game with our defense,” King said. “It’s great seeing the fight and will to win games like this.
“Once we put a first half together like our last two second halves we won’t have to climb out of the hole we put ourselves in,” he added. “It’s a process and we are seeing signs that have us headed in the right direction.”
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