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Posts Tagged ‘Mount Vernon Christian’

Coupeville league rival wins state title

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on March 6, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville’s Ja’Kenya Hoskins battles with Mount Vernon Christian’s Kylee Russell this season. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

The 15th time was the sweetest.

After never finishing higher than fifth place in 14 previous trips to the state tournament, the Mount Vernon Christian girls basketball program achieved nirvana Saturday night.

Holding off Neah Bay 37-33 at the Spokane Arena, the Hurricanes captured the 1B state title.

It’s the third crown for teams from the Northwest 2B/1B League during the 2021-2022 school year.

In the fall, La Conner won the 2B volleyball title, while Orcas Island ruled 2B/1B boys soccer.

MVC, which handed Coupeville 55-24 and 43-23 losses in league play, finishes 23-3.

The Hurricanes knocked off Pomeroy, Naselle, Garfield-Palouse, and Neah Bay in the 16-team state tourney to claim the crown.

Getting the final victory was a bit of struggle, however, as MVC trailed by 11 points in the second half.

Still down four with less than four to go, the ‘Canes closed the season on an 8-0 run, with five different players scoring.

Kylee Russell, Allie Heino, Caitlin Vander Kooy, Emma Droog, and Hannah Van Hofwegen all chipped in to fuel the frantic final run.

The championship caps a postseason in which five NWL hoops teams made it to the state tourney.

On the boys side, Coupeville pushed Kalama and Lake Roosevelt hard in 2B tourney games in their first trip to the big dance in 34 years, while MVC and Orcas Island made the 1B draw.

The Hurricane boys beat Riverside Christian, before being eliminated by Lummi Nation.

Orcas lost to Wellpinit in its one state game.

The NWL team which was heavily favored to win a state title, the top-ranked La Conner girls, finished fourth after being upended by eventual champ Warden in the quarterfinals.

The Braves, who opened with a win over Chief Leschi, rebounded from their loss to beat Lake Roosevelt and Raymond.

Liberty (Spangle) won the 2B boys crown, joining Warden as champs, while the Cusick boys matched the MVC girls in bringing home the biggest hardware.

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Bend? Break? Just win, baby!

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , on January 27, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Caleb Meyer and Coupeville won their 12th straight game Thursday, matching the best start in program history. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Two milestones reached, several more to go.

With a 57-47 win at Mount Vernon Christian Thursday, the Coupeville High School varsity boys basketball squad equals the best start in program history, while clinching at least a tie for its first league title in two decades.

The Wolves, now a pristine 9-0 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 12-0 overall, have matched the starts of the 1969-1970 and 1996-1997 teams.

With three regular season games left on the schedule, including NWL showdowns with Friday Harbor and La Conner, the CHS boys will add their first new plaque to the school’s Wall of Fame since current coach Brad Sherman was a player.

Coupeville can finish no worse than 9-2 in league play, while MVC, at 6-2 with three conference clashes left, can finish no better than 9-2.

If that happens, the schools will technically share the title, though the Wolves swept the season series against the Hurricanes, giving them an edge which can’t be denied.

One more Wolf win in league play, or one more MVC loss, however, and Coupeville sits alone atop the NWL.

The last time a Coupeville boys basketball squad claimed a league title was the 2001-2002 season, when Sherman was a junior sharpshooter rattling the rims for 275 points and Randy King was Wolf coach.

Chris Good led that team in scoring, followed by Sherman, Geoff Hageman, Sean Callahan, Casey Clark, James Meek, Brian Roundy, Dustin Vanvelkinburgh, Brian Fakkema, Rob Fasolo, and Joe Kelley.

20 years after playing on the last Wolf boys hoops team to win a league title, Brad Sherman has led this year’s team to the first level of the promised land. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

This year’s Wolf squad, which travels to Granite Falls Saturday for a non-conference rumble and a crack at the first 13-0 mark in 105 seasons, faced down one of its toughest tests Thursday night.

The game was a one-point affair with six minutes to play, but the Wolves refused to bend or crack.

Having frittered away a 14-point second quarter lead, Coupeville saw MVC tie the game up twice in the second half, but never trailed against the Hurricanes after Logan Downes slapped a rebound home to stake his squad to an early 8-7 lead.

Clinging to a 43-42 advantage with the clock headed under six to play, the Wolves stiffened on defense and swarmed to the ball.

Forcing bad passes, hitting the boards with intensity, and plucking the ball away from the Hurricane ballhandlers, CHS closed the game on a 14-5 run which drove a stake through the heart of every MVC fan in attendance.

We dine on your private school tears, and it is sweet. So sweet.

The Wolves did it from distance, with Downes and Xavier Murdy draining three-balls, with the former making the net jump off a pinpoint pass from Hawthorne Wolfe, and the latter hitting a step-back trey.

And Coupeville’s players did it at the free throw line, hitting six of eight freebies in the waning moments after getting hacked and molested on their way to the hoop.

Caleb Meyer put the cherries on top of the sundae, swishing four consecutive free throws to end things, while Grady Rickner and Downes also tickled the twines for a crucial point.

Toss in Wolfe rippling the nets for a foul shot early in the quarter — netting the 750th point of his prep career — and CHS dominated at the line.

Coupeville hit 12 of 18, while MVC was a modest 3-7.

Coupeville Middle School stars made the trek to Mount Vernon to support their high school counterparts. (Riley White photo)

The game tipped off with Xavier Murdy and Meyer in fine form, as the senior duo combined for 19 points as CHS built a 21-12 lead by the first break.

Meyer knocked down back-to-back treys, with one set up by a Wolfe steal, and things were headed in a positive direction.

Barely a minute into the second quarter, after X-Man converted off of an offensive rebound and Downes drilled the bottom out of the net on a three-ball, the romp was on at 26-12.

But then the romp was back off, at least for a bit.

Coupeville hit a dry spell, MVC went on a run, and then the Hurricanes got lucky to tighten things up considerably.

A 10-0 Hurricanes surge cut the lead, while a three-ball which beat the shot clock and halftime buzzer by about .00002 of a second pulled the host team all the way back to within 31-29.

The lid on the bucket refused to budge for the Wolves during much of the third quarter, but Coupeville’s ramped-up defense kept them in front.

A three-point play the hard way from Meyer cracked a 31-31 tie, while Downes put a rebound back up and in to push the lead to 39-35 heading into the final frame.

That set up a rough-and-tumble fourth quarter, with the game tied at 40-40, then CHS up 43-42 when it made its heroic stand.

By getting the final margin out to 10, the Wolves won by double digits for the 11th time in 12 games this season.

The only team to lose by single digits was 3A Oak Harbor in the season opener, when lil’ 2B Coupeville made a major statement (and harvested many a sweet, sweet tear) with a 70-64 win.

Sherman used seven players in the title clincher, with six scoring.

Xavier Murdy led the way with 23 points, while Meyer banked in 18 and Downes rattled the rims for 12.

Alex Murdy (2), Wolfe (1), and Rickner (1) rounded out the scoring, with Logan Martin a terror on the boards.

“Un-de-feated!!” (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

 

What’s ahead:

Saturday’s non-conference game pits CHS against a 2-8 Granite Falls team, then the Wolves close the regular season with road tilts against NWL foes Friday Harbor (Feb. 4) and La Conner (Feb. 10).

Those games are important, as the three 2B schools in the conference are fighting for two playoff berths — with those slots decided not by the team’s overall record, but their mark against each other.

The league’s four 1B schools — MVC, Darrington, Concrete, and Orcas Island — go their own way in the postseason.

Coupeville is 2-0 in the four-game 2B mini-rumble, having beaten La Conner and Friday Harbor the first time around, with La Conner at 1-1 and Friday Harbor at 0-2.

Districts are Feb. 15-17, with CHS hosting.

The second-ranked 2B team from the NWL plays Auburn Adventist in a loser-out game, with the winner advancing to play the #1 seed.

Both teams in the district championship game earn a trip to state, which would be the first for the Coupeville boys since 1988.

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Hurricanes swamp Wolf JV

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , on January 27, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Zane Oldenstadt pops a shot. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

The Wolf JV gets back at it this weekend.

Not every night goes your way.

Frustrated by an unforgiving rim Thursday the Coupeville High School JV boys basketball squad fell 50-23 at Mount Vernon Christian.

The loss drops the young Wolves to 1-4 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 2-6 overall.

There are three games left on the schedule, however, with all of them on the road, giving Hunter Smith’s squad a chance to bounce back and exit on a high note.

Thursday night the Wolves found themselves in a hole early, and were never able to dig all the way back out.

Trailing 13-6 at the first break, Coupeville slipped behind 24-12 by halftime and 41-15 heading into the final frame.

Once there, the Wolves put together their best charge, playing MVC virtually straight up with four players rattling home points.

Freshman Hunter Bronec paced Coupeville, rippling the nets on a trio of three-balls en route to a team-high 10 points.

Zane Oldenstadt (5), Nick Guay (4), Landon Roberts (2), and Jack Porter (2) joined him in the scoring column, with Guay also hitting a trey.

Hurlee Bronec, Mikey Robinett, Ryan Blouin, William Davidson, and Quinten-Simpson Pilgrim all saw floor time as well.

Coupeville returns to action this Saturday with a non-conference rumble at Granite Falls.

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JV girls remain eternally scrappy

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on January 12, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Skylar Parker and the Wolf JV put up a strong fight Tuesday against Mount Vernon Christian. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

The effort was there, but the rim was unforgiving.

Unable to get a bucket to drop for much of the first half Tuesday, the Coupeville High School JV girls basketball team found itself in a hole against visiting Mount Vernon Christian.

And while the Wolves rallied late, turning their defensive prowess into offensive opportunities, they couldn’t catch the Hurricanes, falling 38-18.

The loss drops Coupeville’s second squad to 1-3 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 1-5 overall.

The tale of the game early on was the Wolves using a scrappy defense to thwart MVC, only to see their own shots kick back off the rim.

Madison McMillan banked in a layup in the waning moments of the first quarter, but that was the only field goal CHS netted before halftime.

Trailing just 4-2 at the first break, the Wolves slipped behind 16-5 heading into the locker room, with late free throws from Brooklyn Thayer and Katie Marti their only other points.

Things perked up in the second half, however, with Coupeville putting together its best offensive showing of the night in the third quarter.

McMillan knocked down back-to-back buckets, Thayer converted off of an offensive rebound, and two Wolves teamed up for the prettiest basket of the game.

Trapped in the corner, with the defense hanging all over her, Kayla Arnold kicked a pass out over the crowd to the waiting Katie Marti, who promptly drained a three-ball which softly rustled the net as it descended.

The second sweetest bucket for the Wolves came in the fourth, with Marti feeding Jada Heaton, and the fab frosh slicing ‘n dicing the defense on the way to her first high school points.

Marti and McMillan paced CHS with six points apiece, with Thayer (4) and Heaton (2) also getting into the scoring column.

Skylar Parker, Bryley Gilbert, Arnold, Desi Ramirez-Vasquez, Reese Wilkinson, Candace Meek, and Yodnum Nakakul all saw floor time for the Wolves, who are now off until Jan. 19.

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No fear, no losses

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , , on January 12, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Brad Sherman doles out hoops wisdom to Xavier Murdy (middle) and Grady Rickner. (Mandi Black photo)

They were ready to rumble.

Surviving a game in which at least two players bled, and three fights almost broke out, the high-flying Coupeville High School varsity boys basketball squad seized control of the Northwest 2B/1B League.

Rallying from an early deficit, the Wolves stormed back to dismantle visiting Mount Vernon Christian 65-48 Tuesday, keeping their unbeaten season alive and well.

Now 5-0 in conference action, 7-0 overall, Coupeville sits a game-and-a-half up on MVC (3-1, 6-3).

Off to the best start since the 1996-1997 team started 12-0, this year’s Wolves are an incredibly balanced unit, something which was on full display against MVC.

The Hurricanes had a notable height advantage, with a pair of six-foot-five heavyweights patrolling the paint, but the Wolves are fast, feisty, and play defense like mad dogs unleashed.

With the Murdy boys terrorizing the neighborhood — Xavier snatching rebounds and Alex driving rival ballhandlers batty — Coupeville used that lock-down D to rally after falling behind 12-4 in the early going.

Hawthorne Wolfe, twisting his body into a pretzel to evade the Hurricane bigs, got things started with a second-chance bucket after yanking a rebound free during a wild scrum.

That lit a fire under Coupeville, with Alex Murdy, Logan Downes, and Wolfe combining for a 12-2 tear to end the first quarter.

At one point, senior banger Logan Martin crushed an MVC shot, rejecting a seemingly sure-thing layup.

When Downes followed it right up by swishing a three-ball while sneering in the face of a would-be defender who was a step too slow, CHS reclaimed its full swagger.

The Hurricanes are a chippy bunch, however, and they were intent on not being pushed around.

So, they pushed/shoved/hip-checked first, second, and last, with bodies being frequently tangled as the refs stepped back and let both teams play fairly fast, loose, and rough and tumble.

MVC snatched its final lead at 23-22 midway through the second quarter, but Coupeville answered quickly enough to make a few heads spin.

Alex Murdy, lighting up the joint all night, knocked down a go-ahead jumper, before Wolfe plucked a ball from a rival, shot down court, then came to a stop on one leg and caressed the net with a three-ball.

Closing the half on a 16-7 tear, the Wolves put a punctation mark on things with back-to-back defensive gems from the Logans.

Martin clamped down on his man during a rumble in the paint, while Downes came flying the length of the court, going airborne to punch the ball free and deny an MVC breakaway.

Sophomore Logan Downes had a strong game on both ends of the floor. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Coupeville continued to pull away in the second half, turning a 32-26 advantage into a lead which ballooned out to 18 points late in the game.

The Wolves, who have shown a willingness to share the ball, feeding the hot hand all season, kept doing that Tuesday.

Alex Murdy dumped in eight more of his game-high 20 points in the third, while Downes beat the third-quarter buzzer, weaving his way through a pack of defenders for a layup which sucked the last bit of life from the Hurricanes.

Turn to the fourth and it was Grady Rickner time, with the sweet-shooting senior raining down pain on MVC, while Xavier Murdy and Caleb Meyer also stung the defense.

X-Man ended the game with his chin bandaged, while at least one visiting player walked past trying to control a bleeding nose.

Add to that several almost-brawls, one sparked by a burly Hurricane bodily flinging a Coupeville player around in the manner of a cowboy trying to rope a wayward calf, and it got the Wolf faithful flexing.

When an MVC player complained about a call, he was met with a lusty “Look at the scoreboard!” from CHS fans anxious to remind the Hurricanes they were, in fact, getting righteously spanked.

The Wolf players largely kept their composure, with Downes, just a sophomore, showing poise as he preached calm, while still flashing a big, slightly-snarky grin every time a Hurricane looked his way.

Coupeville, which is one slim point away from having five different players averaging double-digits scoring this season, once again spread its offense out.

Alex Murdy’s 20 was his best performance as a varsity player and comes a game after big bro torched La Conner for 24.

Downes banged in 14 in support Tuesday, with Rickner (11), Wolfe (10), Meyer (5), and Xavier Murdy (5) also scoring.

Coupeville now has a week of rest, before kicking off a four-games-in-five-days stretch with a road trip to Darrington next Tuesday, Jan. 18.

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