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Posts Tagged ‘Madison McMillan’

Braves flip script, upend Wolf JV girls

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on June 2, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Morgan Stevens and the Coupeville High School JV girls played strong defense Wednesday, but lost at La Conner. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Wolf coach Megan Smith ponders the universe.

Well, that was unexpected.

Playing for the first time in a week-and-a-half, the Coupeville High School JV girls basketball team faced two different La Conner teams Wednesday afternoon.

It was the same players, but the Braves, who couldn’t buy a bucket for 22 minutes, suddenly became a five-pack of sharpshooters in the game’s final 10 minutes, rallying to bounce the visiting Wolves 25-19.

La Conner trailed 14-6 with a hair over two minutes left in the third quarter, before closing on a 19-5 tear which seemed to come virtually out of nowhere.

The loss drops Coupeville to 1-2 on the season.

It was an oddly-paced game from start to finish, as both teams failed to generate much offense in the first half.

La Conner actually got on the board first, when a Hail Mary three-ball somehow found the bottom of the net after 145 scoreless seconds to open play.

Coupeville responded, slowly but surely, using free throws from Madison McMillan and Lyla Stuurmans, packaged around Stuurmans going coast-to-coast on a breakaway, to ease out to a 4-3 lead at the first break.

Stuurmans bucket was set up by a steal and dish by Reese Wilkinson, and she, Katie Marti, and Skylar Parker brought the defensive heat all game.

If the first quarter didn’t make the scoreboard operator have to do a whole lot of work, the second frame was largely the same.

La Conner hit another three-ball which was more about luck than skill, while Coupeville managed just a pair of Marti free-throws, one coming early in the quarter, the other late.

Things took a quick turn for the better in the third quarter — or so it seemed — as the Wolves burst out of the locker room with an 8-0 run.

Jessenia Camarena drilled the bottom out of the net on a jumper to kickstart things, followed by Stuurmans snatching a defensive rebound, then hitting turbo on an end-to-end run for a layup.

McMillan notched Coupeville’s next two buckets, the first off a steal, the second courtesy a rebound, and up 14-6, the Wolves seemed golden.

Spoiler alert — they were not.

The rims at the Landy James Activity Center suddenly refused to accept any CHS shots, no matter whether they came from in the paint or out beyond the arc.

At the same exact moment in time, La Conner’s JV girls morphed before our very eyes from a wildly-inconsistent squad into one which somewhat resembled their school’s high-flying varsity.

The Braves closed the third quarter on a 5-0 run, and this time a three-ball which tumbled through the sky looked crisp and intended.

Things got worse from there — for Coupeville at least — as La Conner scored the first 10 points of the final frame, capping a 15-0 run which left at least one person watching the video stream flabbergasted.

Me, it was me.

Coupeville finally stopped the bleeding when McMillan slapped home a layup off of a long outlet pass from Stuurmans, but time ran away from the Wolves.

“Unfortunately for us, their shots started to fall and ours stopped falling,” said CHS coach Megan Smith. “Definitely a learning game for us, and we will go back to practice and fix a few things to get ready for Orcas on Saturday.

“We played hard and left it all on the court,” she added. “No coach can be mad about that though.”

McMillan and Stuurmans paced CHS, both finishing with seven points, while Marti banked in three, and Camarena rounded out the scorers with two.

Desi Ramirez, Kassidy Upchurch, Pam Morrell, Parker, Wilkinson, Morgan Stevens, and Bryley Gilbert all saw floor time for the Wolves.

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Bash queens beat the softball black ‘n blue

Posted in Little League, Softball, tagged , , , , on May 26, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Taylor Brotemarkle drove in five runs Wednesday, part of a 14-hit, 18-run explosion for the red-hot Hammerheads. (Jackie Saia photo)

Pull the whistle, cause the freight train is running folks over.

Slamming out 14 hits Wednesday night, the Central Whidbey Little League Juniors softball squad roared from behind to claim an 18-12 road win over arch-rival North Whidbey.

With the victory, the Hammerheads push their winning streak to seven games and counting, and carry a 7-2 record into an extended break.

Central Whidbey is off until June 6, when it hosts South Skagit for a doubleheader.

Wednesday night they jumped on North Whidbey early, fell behind, then unleashed the full might of their bats to reclaim control of the game.

“Girls gutted it out,” said CWLL coach Fred Farris. “(Pitcher) Savina (Wells) battled hard against their really good lineup.

“My hat’s off to her for finding the physical and mental fortitude to play seven games in seven days between softball and basketball.”

Five runs in the top of the first got things off to a festive start for Central Whidbey.

Mia Farris started the mini-explosion with a one-out walk, followed by a single off the bat of Wells, then the Hammerheads really started painting using every part of the field.

Madison McMillan bashed an RBI double to center, with Taylor Brotemarkle smacking an RBI single to right, and Chloe Marzocca scorching an RBI single to left.

North Whidbey scraped their way back, however, putting up two runs in the bottom half of the first, before tacking on five in the second to surge ahead 7-5.

The Hammerheads got one run back, but should have had more.

Teagan Calkins led off the top of the second with a triple, but never made it home as North Whidbey’s defense clamped down.

Things went a little better with the same situation in the third, with McMillan blasting a leadoff triple, then sauntering home to score on an RBI single from Katie Marti.

With North Whidbey pushing two runs across in the third, the Hammerheads came to bat in the top of the fourth trailing 9-6, but showing no panic.

Instead, Central Whidbey’s bash queens blistered the ball to the tune of nine runs in the frame, turning a thriller into a rout.

The Hammerheads mixed five hits and five walks (including Mayleen Weatherford being plunked) to create the extravaganza of runs, with nearly everyone in the lineup chipping in.

Candace Meek led off with a single, with Marti, Calkins, and Mia Farris all whomping two-baggers in support.

Up 15-9, Central cruised in from there for the win, with Wells holding North Whidbey down with precision pitching, while her defense played lights-out behind her.

The Hammerheads spread their offense around, with eight of 11 batters getting a base-knock, and nine of 11 scoring.

With seven of the 14 hits being of the extra-base variety, Central’s coaching staff came away suitably impressed with their ferocious lineup.

Marzocca and Calkins both had liners which were ripped out of a cannon, but it was McMillan who truly wowed the gathered crowd.

She lashed a double and two triples, walked twice, and came around to score all five times.

Better yet, her big blows put the absolute fear of God into rival pitchers in three states.

“Madison’s triples would have both been over our fence (at Rhododendron Park),” Fred Farris said. “The second one hit half way up their “gray monster,” which is 220 feet (away) and 12 feet high.”

When McMillan wasn’t penning her epic tale, her teammates ably helped her cause.

Wells (three singles), Calkins (2B, 3B), Marti (1B, 2B), Farris (2B), Meek (1B), Marzocca (1B), and Brotemarkle (1B) all put the ball where the defense wasn’t.

Meanwhile Jada Heaton walked twice and scored both times, Weatherford and Anna Steckman made solid contributions, and Brotemarkle was raking, picking up a team-high five RBI.

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Hammerheads keep on hammerin’

Posted in Little League, Softball, tagged , , , , , on May 24, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Katie Marti and Co. are a hot-hitting pack of softball sluggers. (Jackie Saia photo)

Hit ’em hard, hit ’em fast, and keep on hitting ’em.

The Central Whidbey Little League Juniors softball squad erupted for six runs in the first inning Monday, launching themselves to a 17-7 home win over arch-rival North Whidbey.

The victory, the sixth-straight for the Hammerheads, lifts them to 6-2 on the season.

Central Whidbey came out swinging hot bats, and never let up, collecting 20 base-knocks spread out amongst 10 batters.

Mia Farris kicked things off in the bottom of the first with a single, then her teammates unloaded six more hits before the frame was done.

The big blows came from back-to-back doubles from Madison McMillan and Taylor Brotemarkle.

After adding a fairly quiet two runs in the second inning, Central Whidbey unleashed the full tsunami in the bottom of the third.

Whacking nine hits, with Teagan Calkins and Savina Wells each coming around to collect two base-knocks apiece, the Hammerheads pushed nine runs across the plate to stretch their lead out to 17-3.

Wells lashed a triple, with Calkins and Farris both punching doubles as Central Whidbey kept its base runners in constant motion.

North Whidbey chipped away at the lead a bit, getting it down to 10 runs, but that was still enough for the game to be called early thanks to the mercy rule.

Wells fired six strikeouts while prowling the pitcher’s circle, while picking up a team-high three RBI and tying McMillan with a game-high four hits.

Calkins, Farris, Brotemarkle, and Katie Marti had two hits apiece, with Jada Heaton, Chloe Marzocca, Mayleen Weatherford, and Allison Nastali all chipping in with a base-knock.

Nine of the 11 Hammerheads players scored, with McMillan, Wells, and Farris all tapping home three times apiece.

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Stuurmans is a savage

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , , on May 22, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville 8th grader Lyla Stuurmans scored 16 points in two quarters Saturday, lifting the high school JV to a road win, capping a busy day in which she also scored her first varsity points. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Lyla Stuurmans played a lot like her coach did back in the day.

Limited to just two quarters Saturday, after also playing in the varsity game, the 8th grader pumped in 16 points to spark the Coupeville High School JV girls basketball squad to a big win on Friday Harbor.

With the 34-20 victory, the Wolves even their season record at 1-1.

Coupeville JV coach Megan Smith filled up the basket as a player, and she sits as the #4 varsity scorer in Wolf girls history.

Stuurmans may still have a ways to go to get to Smith’s level, but the silky-smooth shooter has already shown she can drop buckets with the best of them.

After scoring her first varsity points earlier in the day, Stuurmans went off for 12 points in the first quarter of the JV contest, including nailing a three-ball from behind the arc.

With fellow 8th grader Madison McMillan adding six points to the cause, the Wolves jumped all over Friday Harbor, pounding out to an 18-2 advantage by the first break.

From there it was all easy street, with Coupeville pushing the lead out to 24-4 at the half and 30-10 by the end of the third quarter.

Friday Harbor finally found a fighting chance in the fourth, scoring half of its points and trimming the margin just a bit before the buzzer ended things.

McMillan finished with 10 points to back Stuurmans and her 16, while Skylar Parker netted a pair of buckets to nab her first four points of the season.

Jessenia Camarena and Katie Marti rounded out the scorers, with two points apiece, while Bryley Gilbert, Pam Morrell, Kassidy Upchurch, Morgan Stevens, Reese Wilkinson, and Desi Ramirez also saw floor time.

With most of the Northwest 2B/1B League schools not fielding girls JV teams this season, the Wolves only have a four-game schedule, instead of the 12 their varsity counterparts are set to play.

That means the Coupeville second crew doesn’t play again until June 5, when they travel to Orcas Island, and June 8, when they host Friday Harbor in a rematch of Saturday’s bout.

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(Truly) young guns hang tough in opener

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , , on May 20, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville 8th grader Madison McMillan, playing on the high school JV team, led her squad in scoring in their season opener. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Say hello to the next generation, early.

Unlike a lot of other Northwest 2B/1B League schools, Coupeville High School is fielding two girls basketball squads this season.

With program numbers down, the Wolves salvaged their JV team by allowing 8th graders to play high school ball, and more than half the girls in uniform Thursday were middle school students by day, high school hoops hotshots by night.

And the (truly) young guns held up well, accounting for two-thirds of their team’s points in a closer-than-it-sounds 35-24 loss to visiting Orcas Island.

Coupeville was within a point through the first two quarters, and trailed by just three heading into the fourth, but that final frame stung, with the older Vikings closing on a 12-4 tear.

Coaching her team in a game for the first time in 15 months, Wolf JV hoops guru Megan Smith was realistic with her expectations, and pleased with much of what she saw.

“We had some really good moments of greatness and some of not so much,” she said. “We are super young with not a lot of players that have experience, and that’s okay, we just have some more work to do is all.

“It was good to see them out on the court and actually playing the game!”

With true high schooler Jessenia Camarena leading the way in the early going, the Wolves trailed just 8-7 after one quarter and 16-15 at the halftime break.

Masks in place and no fans in the gym, per Orcas School District request, Coupeville hung tough, exiting the third quarter down just 23-20.

Madison McMillan paced the Wolves with a team-high eight points in her high school hoops debut, while Camarena banged home seven, Lyla Stuurmans knocked down six, Katie Marti flipped in a bucket, and Morgan Stevens swished a free throw.

McMillan, Stuurmans, and Marti, along with fellow Wolf hoopsters Pamela Morrell, Bryley Gilbert, and Kassidy Upchurch, are all 8th graders.

Also seeing floor time for Smith’s squad were Reese Wilkinson, Skylar Parker, and Desi Ramirez.

With Orcas Island and Friday Harbor the only other NWL teams fielding a girls JV squad this season, Coupeville’s second team will play just four games, while other Wolf teams get 10-12 contests.

One of those comes up quick, however, as CHS travels to Friday Harbor this Saturday.

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