Makana Stone, a teammate above all else. (John Fisken, Amy King and Kristin Hurlburt photos)
Having talent is one thing. Having the grace to know how to wield that talent is something else entirely.
For the past four years, Makana Stone has given Wolf fans every thing we could hope for from one of our prep athletes.
She is immensely skilled, yes, and has pulled off plays on the soccer pitch, the basketball court and the track oval that have made our jaws scrape the floor.
Tuesday night, when the Wolves host Chimacum in a hoops doubleheader (boys varsity 3:45/girls 5:30), likely the next-to-last home game of her career, she is set to pass some significant milestones.
These are marks Stone has accomplished through hard work, dedication, grit, raw skills and being able to work with any and all teammates.
If it was up to her she would likely flick away the attention, but so few Coupeville players have hit these marks they need to be noted.
Having already snatched the 800th rebound of her career earlier this season, Makana sits just four steals from 200 and 22 points away from 1,000.
But Makana has always, first and foremost, been a team player.
Time and again, I see her reach out, offer a pat on the head, a word, a smile.
She treats starters and scrubs the same, and the love is returned back to her in equal measure.
As a young athlete she meshed with veterans such as Bessie Walstad and Breeanna Messner, and now, as a senior, she has risen gracefully to be a leader to youngsters like Lindsey Roberts and Lauren Rose.
When she talks about her teammates, past and present, Stone positively glows.
I wouldn’t be so close without the help of my teammates throughout the years, especially this year and last.
The main problem that girls have once they step onto the court is confidence, and I didn’t have that confidence my freshman and sophomore year, but I’ve found my confidence this year and last because of the support from my team.
I stopped worrying about what I was doing wrong and started worrying about what I needed to do to do my part on the team for us to get the W.
While I still am not as confident of a basketball player as I’d like to be, a lot of my accomplishments come from the confidence I’ve acquired from the support of my team from last year — Kacie, Julia, Hailey, Madeline, Monica, Wynter, McKenzie, Mia and Kailey and this year — Kailey, Mia, Lauren and Lauren, Tiffany, Lindsey, Kyla, Skyler and Allison.
I couldn’t/can’t reach 1,000 points without my team!
Have you ever heard of the acronym Together Everyone Achieves More? I’ll just leave you with that.
It is easy to jabber on and on about her accomplishments (as I frequently do), but Stone deflects praise on to others as effortlessly as she swats shots into the third row of bleachers.
She has put up with my hyperventilating for four years and still smiles when she says hi, and I appreciate that.
Makana had a truly lovely spirit as a young child, and that has never changed for a moment as she has grown.
Her play, and her spirit, put her in the upper echelon with past Wolf hoops legends like Brianne King, Marlene Grasser, Novi Barron, Ashley Ellsworth-Bagby and Megan Smith.
Stone will rightfully be remembered as one of the best to ever pull on the red and white at CHS.
But that will happen for two reasons — her numbers and the way she has carried herself.
You can be a great player and be despised. Or you can be a great player and be loved.
Makana chose the second path and has embraced her teammates every step of the way. They became better because of her and she became better because of them.
She has never asked us for the spotlight, but, as one, we choose to send it her way.
Tuesday night, we acknowledge her milestones, yes, but we cheer because of the young woman she is now, and has always been.
Coupeville Sports 