Melanie Navarro and Co. are clicking on offense. (Jackie Saia photo)
The bats are barkin’.
The defense and pitching were a little on the suspect side Saturday, but it mattered not, as the Coupeville High School varsity softball squad rained down base knocks en route to demolishing visiting Orcas Island.
Rapping out 17 hits — including home runs from Mia Farris and Teagan Calkins — the Wolves built an 11-1 lead, gave back nine runs, then finished off a 23-10 rout.
Scoring in all four innings in which it hit, CHS bounces back from its first conference loss since rejoining the Northwest 2B/1B League in 2020 and gets to 2-1 in NWL play, 4-3 overall.
Plus, with Mother Nature holding off on the expected rain, the Wolves were able to raise money for cancer awareness.
Raising money for the fight against cancer. (Susan Farris photo)
Coupeville brought in $488 from in-person donations for the WhidbeyHealth Foundation, with more money on its way through online contributions.
The Wolf sluggers wore different colored socks, to represent the many forms of cancer, and raffled off multiple gift baskets during the event.
The Wolves make for a colorful bunch. (Photo courtesy Kevin McGranahan)
On the field, CHS came out swinging hot, pushing across eight runs in the bottom of the first.
Up 8-1 after one, and 11-1 through two, the Wolves then hit a road bump in the top of the third.
Orcas only picked up two hits in the frame, but seven walks and a Coupeville error allowed the Vikings to go on a nine-run tear and suddenly things were close at 11-10.
That lasted for about half a second, however, as the Wolves responded by scoring six runs in their half of the third and another six in the fourth.
Wolf relief pitcher Maya Lucero came on to shut the Vikings down, giving up just a lone single through the final two innings, and it was time to put a W in the book and gather for the post-game sing-along.
Coupeville’s offense came from all directions, with 10 Wolves getting at least one hit, with three doubles, two triples, and those two round trippers the highlight.
Maya Lucero picked up a team-high five RBI, while Gwen Gustafson (4) and Jada Heaton (3) also showed a knack for plating their teammates.
For Wolf coach Kevin McGranahan, it wasn’t a flawless performance, but it did net the end result he wanted to see.
“Well, a win is a win,” he said. “We played the same inconsistent defense; without looking too close at the book I would guess maybe two of their 10 runs were earned.
“The only thing keeping us afloat right now is our offense, which is very aggressive and swinging big bats.”
The Wolves get three practices to get back into sync before welcoming Cedar Park Christian-Bothell to Whidbey Thursday, Apr. 6.
That non-conference clash, set to start at 4 PM, is a reschedule of a game postponed Friday by a poor weather forecast.
Saturday stats:
Taylor Brotemarkle — One single, one triple, two walks
Teagan Calkins — One home run, two walks
Mia Farris — One single, one home run
Gwen Gustafson — One double
Jada Heaton — Three singles
Allie Lucero — One single, two walks
Maya Lucero — One single, two doubles, one walk
Madison McMillan — Two singles, two walks
Melanie Navarro — One triple
Sofia Peters — One single, two walks
Coupeville Sports 