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Posts Tagged ‘La Conner’

“The players were absolutely raking!”

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , on April 16, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Chelsi Stevens smashed the crud out of the ball Thursday in La Conner. (Julie Wheat photo)

The bats? They were barking.

Playing under blue skies in La Conner Thursday, the undefeated Coupeville High School softball squad unleashed an epic beatdown, thrashing the Braves 30-1 behind a never-ending barrage of base knocks.

The victory, coming in a game where the Wolves could have cracked triple digits if they were bullies (they’re not), lifts Aaron Lucero’s squad to 6-0 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 10-0 overall.

Sitting at #5 among 2B schools in the most-recent RPI rankings from the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association, Coupeville gets a test this Saturday, when it travels to Forks for a non-conference doubleheader.

After Thursday’s win, which was mercy-ruled after five innings and featured the Wolves giving away their final seven outs by having runners leave base early, CHS has outscored its foes 168-16.

Coupeville has beaten teams from 3A, 2A, 1A, 2B, and 1B so far, with only Oak Harbor (4-3) and Friday Harbor (7-1) managing to avoid being ten-runned.

For the Wolves, Thursday’s game, which was played in mild weather, was a chance to bounce back after “only” beating La Conner 10-0 Tuesday in the middle of a raging windstorm on the frigid Central Whidbey prairie.

Instead of having infield dirt flung into their eyeballs while trying to bat, the Smash Sisters could focus simply on the incoming ball. And then beat the ever lovin’ snot out of it.

Capri Anter had “a heck of a day,” said coach Aaron Lucero, whacking three triples. (Jackie Saia photo)

“We hit all up and down the lineup,” Aaron Lucero said. “Much better performance from Tuesday.

“We worked quite a bit on approach yesterday and they really listened. Players were absolutely raking! Really proud of all of them.”

Tuesday, the Wolves only scraped out two runs across the first two innings. Thursday, the basepaths were a much-busier place.

A walk to Sydney Van Dyke and a single into the gap from Teagan Calkins got things going in the top of the first, before Chelsi Stevens scorched an RBI single that tore off a piece of the third-baseman’s glove as it skidded by.

That was followed by Capri Anter launching the first of her three(!) triples, sending two runners sprinting for home, while Cami Van Dyke lashed a two-run single over second base as CHS piled up six runs in the opening frame.

La Conner couldn’t solve Wolf pitcher Adeline Maynes the first time around, as she recorded 13 strikeouts and threw a no-hitter, and they couldn’t solve her this time either.

While the Braves did get a base knock off the sophomore hurler Thursday, she whiffed eight in just three innings of work, before getting her final out by snagging a popped-up bunt.

With the game out of hand, Maynes handed pitching duties to Anter in the fourth, with the relief ace picking up three K’s of her own.

While La Conner couldn’t get anything going offensively, at least until it got one late run in the fifth, the Wolves were locked and loaded, throwing down an additional 12 runs in the second and another 11 in the third.

The second featured another booming triple from Anter, who promptly got drilled in the backside by a “wayward” pitch the third time she stepped to the plate, plus a two-run single from Ava Lucero and a bases-clearing three-run double off the bat of Stevens.

The next frame was more of the same, with Stevens spraying multiple RBI hits into the wild blue yonder, while Aaron Lucero was able to extensively use his bench.

Ari Vinson was one of 10 Wolves to get a hit in the win. (Jackie Saia photo)

Young guns Zayne Roos, Allie Powers, Zariyah Allen, Marina Jadwin, Emily Rains, Olivia Martin, and Ari Vinson all got at-bats in the third, with Allen and Vinson rapping base hits.

The Wolves used 17 players in the win, and up 29-0 through three innings, did their darndest not to score the magical 30th run, having runner after runner give themselves up short of making the turn home.

But sometimes destiny can’t be denied, as Sydney Van Dyke walloped a triple to the deep, dark regions of the outfield in the fifth.

When the throw back in got airmailed over the bag, she was legally obligated to finish her trot around the bags. Legally, I say!

 

Thursday stats:

Zariyah Allen — One single
Capri Anter — One single, three triples, one walk
Haylee Armstrong — Three walks
Teagan Calkins — Four singles, one walk
Emma Cushman — One single
Ava Lucero — Two singles, one walk
Olivia Martin— One walk
Adeline Maynes — One single, two walks
Zayne Roos — One walk
Chelsi Stevens — Two singles, two doubles
Cami Van Dyke — Three singles, one double
Sydney Van Dyke — One single, one triple, two walks
Ari Vinson — One single

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Narrow loss snaps win streak

Posted in Baseball, tagged , , , , on April 16, 2026| Leave a Comment »

The race is on. (Julie Wheat photos)

Every play mattered.

Coupeville and La Conner clashed in two high school baseball games over a three-day period this week, with each home team pulling out a one-run victory.

Tuesday that meant smiles for the Wolves on a cold Central Whidbey prairie.

Thursday the mood was a bit more somber under blue skies on the mainland, as the Braves got a bit of revenge with a 3-2 win to earn a split in the season series.

The loss, which snaps a four-game winning streak for Coupeville, drops Steve Hilborn’s squad to 5-1 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 7-3 overall.

The Wolves, who travel to Forks Saturday for a non-conference tilt, sit a game off of NWL top dog Mount Vernon Christian (6-0) at the halfway point of the season.

CHS doesn’t face MVC until the final week of the campaign but was hoping for a triumph Thursday to stay even with the idle Hurricanes.

But, while the Wolves came close, they left too many runners stranded in a low-scoring affair, while La Conner found the crunch-time hit it needed to come out on top.

That game-winning blow came off the bat of Angus Poprycz, who laced an RBI single to right field in the bottom of the sixth inning to bust up a 2-2 tie.

Coupeville put the potential tying run on base in the top of the seventh, thanks to senior Aiden O’Neill eking out his third walk of the afternoon.

Unfortunately, after stealing second base he never got any closer to home as the Braves defense clamped down.

Leo Rodriguez takes his cuts.

The Wolves had opened the scoring way back in the first, with Leo Rodriguez laying down a bunt single, before coming around to tap home thanks to a sac fly from Camden Glover.

La Conner answered with a run in the second and another in the third, benefitting from a couple of CHS errors, while the visitors went scoreless from the second through the fifth.

Coupeville had runners at second and third in the third, after a walk to O’Neill and a single from Chase Anderson, but a fly out ended the rally before it could get interesting.

In the fourth, the Wolves again had multiple guys aboard, with Carson Grove ripping a hit and Riley Lawless earning a free pass, but once again La Conner escaped at the last moment.

CHS finally knotted things back up in the sixth, with Glover reaching on an error, stealing second, and scoring on an RBI single from Grove.

But that was it for the Wolves in a game where runs were at a premium.

While Coupeville had several miscues in the field, it did pull off a nice double play, with Glover, Anderson, and Lawless teaming up for the twin-killing.

On the mound Glover scattered three hits across six innings of work, racking up eight strikeouts along the way.

 

Thursday stats:

Chase Anderson — Two singles
Carson Grove — Two singles
Riley Lawless — Two walks
Aiden O’Neill — Three walks
Leo Rodriguez — One single

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Patience pays off for undefeated Wolves

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , on April 14, 2026| Leave a Comment »

The prairie looked nothing like this Tuesday, but Cami Van Dyke and Co. win in any weather. (Grant Van Dyke photo)

Hits are overrated.

Limited to just three base knocks Tuesday, the Coupeville High School softball team remained undefeated, using 15 walks and a top-tier pitching performance from Adeline Maynes to KO visiting La Conner 10-0.

The win, mercy-ruled after five innings, lifts the Wolves to 5-0 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 9-0 overall, and keeps them as one of just two squads in 2B who haven’t tasted defeat this spring.

Aaron Lucero’s squad, which came within a two-out error in the fifth of seeing Maynes toss a perfect game, hits the road Thursday for a rematch at La Conner, before playing a non-conference doubleheader in Forks Saturday afternoon.

Back from Spring Break, the Wolves were greeted by a chilly prairie which rudely kicked up the cold wind.

If the weather was less than appealing, the one thing fully warmed up was the pitching arm of Maynes, as the sophomore hurler whiffed 13 Braves, while inducing a pair of groundouts to Cami Van Dyke.

The shortstop, an 8th grader who plays like a grizzled vet, made a very-strong play on the first of those two fielding chances, knocking down a hot grounder, then firing a laser to Ava Lucero for the out.

La Conner only got one runner aboard on this day, and it wasn’t until the 15th Braves batter, who beat a throw to first on a play where the ball got juggled and squirted free.

No biggie, as Maynes promptly chucked three strikes past the next hitter, ending the game the way she started it, throwing heat and essentially playing catch with backstop Teagan Calkins.

The Wolves, a hit-first team, didn’t get their first base knock until Ava Lucero dumped a truly gorgeous bunt single down the third-base line in the third inning.

At that point, CHS was up 2-0, having eked out a run in the first and another in the second using patience at the plate and opportunistic running on the basepaths.

Maynes forced home the only run she would need, drawing a bases-loaded walk to put CHS on the board, before Haylee Armstrong scooted home on a wild pitch an inning later.

Cue the third, which, while not a huge explosion, still put the game on ice.

Ava Lucero’s bunt single followed walks to Capri Anter (who got drilled by a wayward pitch) and Maynes, and once the bags were juiced, the Wolves went to work.

A combination of La Conner wild pitches, passed balls, and mental mistakes allowed CHS to plate three, with Anter and pinch-runner Olivia Martin nimbly avoiding tags at home, before Coupeville used its biggest hit of the day to break things open.

The blow came off the bat of Calkins, with “The Red Dragon” lashing a two-run double to left, one of the few times a hitter was able to out-muscle the wind, which was steadily gusting in across home plate, kicking up infield dirt every two seconds.

Coupeville pushed the lead out to 10-0 in the fourth, with a dirt-covered Anter careening home on a wild pitch, followed by Sydney Van Dyke crushing a two-run single off the fielder’s glove in left.

 

Tuesday stats:

Capri Anter — Two walks
Haylee Armstrong — Three walks
Teagan Calkins — One double, one walk
Emma Cushman — One walk
Ava Lucero — One single
Adeline Maynes — Two walks
Chelsi Stevens — One walk
Cami Van Dyke — Two walks
Sydney Van Dyke — One single, three walks

Emma Cushman waits for her pitch. (Jackie Saia photo)

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Chilly day, warm win

Posted in Baseball, tagged , , , , on April 14, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Chase Anderson fires BBs. (Jackie Saia photos)

Swing and a miss.

Wolf hurlers Chase Anderson and Camden Glover combined to whiff 17 La Conner hitters Tuesday, propelling the Coupeville High School baseball squad to its sixth win in its last seven games.

Slipping past the visiting Braves 5-4, Steve Hilborn’s squad gets to a flawless 5-0 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 7-2 overall.

That leaves the Wolves a half-game back of Mount Vernon Christian (6-0) in the race for the NWL crown, with a rematch against the Braves on the mainland set for Thursday afternoon.

La Conner actually got on the board first Tuesday, pushing two runners across in the top of the first, before Anderson clamped down and turned into a K-machine, eventually racking up 13 punch-outs across 5.2 innings of work.

Coupeville got one run back in its half of the first, before taking the lead for good with two more tallies in the bottom of the second.

All three runs were scored after CHS found itself with no one on base and two outs.

Anderson got the Wolves on the board, reaching base on a walk before stealing second, and coming around to score off a La Conner error.

The go-ahead runs were courtesy two more botched plays by the Braves, with Leo Rodriguez and Aiden O’Neill scoring off an error and a passed ball, respectively.

Aiden O’Neill eyeballs the pitcher.

From there Coupeville tacked on two more runs in the fourth to run the lead out to 5-2, then gave two back in the fifth.

Camden Glover and Coop Cooper delivered back-to-back RBI singles in the fourth to pad the lead, sending liners where the defense wasn’t.

While La Conner pulled back within one, the visitors never came close to getting the tying run home, as Coupeville’s pitching staff closed the game with a bang.

Taking the ball from Anderson in the sixth, Glover earned the save by striking out four of the five batters he faced, slamming the door shut on a chilly, windy prairie “spring” day.

 

Tuesday stats:

Chase Anderson — One single, two walks
Coop Cooper — One single, one walk
Camden Glover — One single, two walks
Carson Grove — Two singles, one walk
Riley Lawless — One walk
Aiden O’Neill — Two walks
Leo Rodriguez — One walk
Killian Shaw — One walk
Chris Zenz — One walk

 

Monday’s game washed out:

Coupeville was slated to travel to South Whidbey Monday for a non-conference clash, but, with Spring Break over, Mother Nature decided to bring back the rain and wind.

The game will likely be rescheduled at a later date, according to CHS Athletic Director Willie Smith.

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Wolves run Braves off the floor

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , , on January 30, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Davin Houston works his way towards a rebound. (Jackie Saia photo)

Balance. All about the balance.

With eight players scoring Friday, and three hitting for double-digits, the Coupeville High School varsity boys’ basketball squad ran visiting La Conner off the floor.

With a 66-36 win on Senior Night, the Wolves get to 4-5 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 7-10 overall.

Next up is the regular season finale Feb. 6, on the road at Friday Harbor, then the start of the double-elimination District 1/2 tourney Feb. 12.

That royal rumble features seven schools fighting for two tickets to state, with the Wolves learning their path when the bracket is released the day after the regular season ends.

Friday night an old rivalry wrote a new chapter, and this tale featured Coupeville (almost) leading from start to finish.

Technically La Conner forged a pair of ties in the first quarter, knotting things up at 3-3 and 7-7, but the Braves never led and never really threatened to do so either.

Coupeville closed the opening quarter with back-to-back buckets from Chase Anderson and Camden Glover to shatter that last tie, before pulling away for good in the second quarter.

CHS senior Aiden O’Neill, a quiet warrior who has bravely fought through multiple injuries across the last four years, banked in a rebound to crack the 100-point career scoring club and set the Wolves off on their game-busting run.

From there, Glover and Anderson traded baskets, with the former shredding the defense in the paint and the latter rampaging from end to end, often after snagging key steals.

Up 33-16 at the half, Coupeville saw its advantage whittled down to 37-26 midway through the third but never blinked.

Davin Houston tickled the twines with a silky three-ball from the left side — Coupeville’s only trey on the night — and Brad Sherman’s squad closed the quarter on a 14-4 surge.

Included in that run was a bucket from Anderson which pushed him up and over the 900-point mark, making him just the ninth Wolf boy to do so across 109 seasons of CHS basketball.

The fourth quarter was an eight-minute highlight reel, as the Wolves continued to pour in buckets, with many of them set up by pinpoint passes.

Anderson was wheeling and dealing, while Glover launched a floor-length lob which hit O’Neill in mid-stride for a breakaway bucket.

Putting together the kind of balanced book every coach loves to see, Coupeville got a game-high 22 points from Glover, 20 from Anderson, and 10 from Houston.

O’Neill (6), Easton Green (4), Carson Grove (2), Malachi Somes (1), and Liam Blas (1) rounded out the attack, with Riley Lawless and Nathan Coxsey also seeing floor time for the Wolves.

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