Hope “The Surgeon” Lodell carved up La Conner for three hits Thursday, including one which nearly ripped off the pitcher’s leg. (John Fisken photo)
It was a weird game.
But it was a win, and in the end, that’s what matters most.
Piling up 18 hits, with every starter recording at least one base-knock, the Coupeville High School softball squad crushed visiting La Conner 19-9 Thursday afternoon.
The non-conference victory, called in the sixth inning thanks to the mercy rule, lifts the Wolves to 9-1, matching the best start in program history.
With a big Olympic League showdown coming Friday at Klahowya, CHS coach Kevin McGranahan tried to keep his #1 pitcher, daughter Katrina, out of the pitcher’s circle.
It mostly worked.
The younger McGranahan had to make a first-inning cameo, then took over the game for good late in the fourth inning as #2 hurler Sarah Wright struggled with her control.
Normally Coupeville’s starting catcher, Wright did not give up a hit and whiffed five Braves while in the circle, but frequent walks made her life tougher than she wanted.
La Conner drew first blood, plating six during a long, drawn-out top of the first.
The Braves collected their one and only hit — a two-out, two-run single to right off of McGranahan — but everything was set up by five walks.
Not missing a beat, Coupeville went right to work in the bottom half of the inning, and did it in a completely different style.
Bashing away, the Wolves piled up nine runs of their own, off of nine legitimate hits.
CHS got hits from its first four batters — consecutive singles by Lauren Rose, Jae LeVine, McGranahan and Wright — to score two runs, then tacked on two more on a passed ball and an overthrow at third.
Sensing La Conner’s spirit breaking, Hope Lodell tried to actually physically break the Braves hurler, whacking a single sharply off of her leg.
Beware when “The Surgeon” says she’s ready to operate on you…
Having tenderized their prey, the Wolves went right back to beating her pitches senseless.
Tiffany Briscoe thumped a two-run double to tie things at six, Tamika Nastali and Rose added singles, then McGranahan topped things off with a long triple.
Given the lead back, Wright was far more effective the rest of the way, and she got a bit of help from her defense.
Playing short, McGranahan pulled off an unassisted double play, spearing a soft liner, then hopping on second to nab the straying runner.
Coupeville continued to add to its lead, adding two in the third — an RBI double from LeVine and an RBI single from McGranahan — two more in the fourth and a solo run in the fifth.
The fourth-inning runs came courtesy a two-run double by Rose.
Heading into the bottom of the sixth up 14-9, Coupeville got playing time for all of its bench players and took advantage of a change in pitcher to close out the game by playing take-your-base, La Conner style.
The Wolves, after only sitting around long enough to draw two walks in the first five innings, were super patient as La Conner’s reliever issued eight more free passes in the final inning.
Emma Mathusek knocked in a run on a nicely hit grounder, while both Nicole Lester and Mackenzie Davis forced home runs with bases-loaded walks.
Lester’s came a bit more painfully, as she got plunked, which caused the Wolf baseball players in attendance to scream their support for her willingness to wear the pitch.
Rose led the hit attack, whacking three singles and a double, while Lodell (three singles) and McGranahan (two singles and a triple) had three base-knocks apiece.
LeVine (a single and double), Wright (two singles), Mikayla Elfrank (double), Tiffany Briscoe (double), Nastali (single) and Veronica Crownover (single) rounded out the assault.
Coupeville got all 16 players on its roster into the game, with Kyla Briscoe scoring a run while pinch-running, as well as Scout Smith, Robin Cedillo and Melia Welling getting at-bats.
