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Posts Tagged ‘Northwest League’

NWL teams chase state hoops titles

Posted in Basketball, tagged , , , , on February 26, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Isaiah Price (21) and La Conner were knocked out of the state basketball playoffs this weekend. (Chloe Marzocca photo)

Four teams are still chasing the dream, but one has a better shot than the other three.

The Mount Vernon Christian boys and girls, La Conner girls, and Orcas Island boys are still alive as the 2022-2023 state basketball championships head towards their final games.

Two other Northwest 2B/1B League hoops teams — the Orcas girls and La Conner boys — also made it to state but were knocked out in regional round games Saturday.

Which was also the fate for the Auburn Adventist Academy boys, who nipped Coupeville in a winner-to-state, loser-out clash during the District 1/2 tourney.

Where things sit:

 

MVC girls:

The defending 1B state champs held off Inchelium 49-41 Saturday and are the lone NWL team to be in the double-elimination winners brackets headed to next week’s 12-team event at the Spokane Arena.

The fourth-seeded Hurricanes, now 22-4, play in the quarterfinals Mar. 2 against the winner of Moses Lake Christian and Odessa, then would likely have to topple #1 Neah Bay in the semifinals to have a shot at going back-to-back.

(STATUS: Alive ‘n Thrivin’)

 

La Conner girls:

The #6 Braves (19-5) lost their state opener, falling 52-44 Friday to #3 Napavine.

La Conner tips off Mar. 1 in Spokane against #11 Northwest Christian (Colbert) in a loser-out game, with #4 Warden, which smacked them a year ago, waiting in the quarterfinals.

(STATUS: Living on the edge)

 

Orcas Island girls:

The Vikings entered the 1B tourney as the #13 seed, and were promptly roughed up and eliminated by #12 Willapa Valley, falling 51-30 in a loser-out game. No trip to Spokane and a final record of 12-12.

(STATUS: On to spring sports)

 

MVC boys:

The Hurricanes are 21-6 and Spokane-bound after toppling Pomeroy 65-40 Saturday in the #10 vs. #15 matchup.

Up next is a clash with #7 Cusick Mar. 1, with the loser headed home and the winner advancing to play top-seeded Wellpinit in the quarterfinals.

(STATUS: Need an upset)

 

Orcas Island boys:

While the 2B state tourney began with 16 teams, the 1B event started with 20 squads because of a larger number of schools playing basketball in that classification.

The Vikings (21-9), seeded #16, had to win twice to make it to Spokane, and did, eliminating #17 Inchelium 63-42 Tuesday and #9 Neah Bay 73-65 Saturday.

Next up? Another loser-out game, this time against #8 Oakville Mar. 1, with #2 Sunnyside Christian awaiting the winner in the quarterfinals.

(STATUS: Playing with house money)

 

La Conner boys:

The surprise bi-district champs were the only boys team in the 2B state field to boast a losing record, and they were seeded #15 in a 16-team field.

It was one and done and no trip to Spokane for the Braves, who finished 11-13 after being bounced 68-41 by #10 Chief Leschi.

(STATUS: On to spring)

 

Auburn Adventist boys:

The Falcons were seeded #13, but were no match for #12 Tri-Cities Prep, which eliminated them 63-42, sending AAA home with a final record of 18-5.

(STATUS: On to spring)

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Wolf boys clinch playoff berth, girls close

Posted in Basketball, tagged , , , , , on February 3, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Whatcha gonna do when the Wolves come for you?  (Bailey Thule photo)

The round robin decides everything.

While Coupeville High School basketball teams, and their closest rivals, can play up to 20 regular season games, only four of those rumbles dictate playoff participation.

The Northwest 2B/1B League currently houses four 1B schools — Darrington, Orcas Island, Concrete, and Mount Vernon Christian — and three 2B institutions — Coupeville, La Conner, and Friday Harbor.

When the postseason arrives, 2B and 1B split off and go their own ways.

For basketball, all four 1B schools make the playoffs, which began Thursday.

When it comes to 2B hoops, however, you have to be top two to get the call, since there are a lot less 2B schools in the region, making for a smaller postseason tourney.

Those two NWL teams, repping District 1, pair off with District 2’s Auburn Adventist Academy and Northwest Christian (Lacey), at bi-districts Feb. 13-18.

That event, held at Coupeville High School, offers two tickets to state for the boys this year and one for the girls.

D1/2 will get two state berths for the girls next year. Allegedly.

With that in mind, La Conner swept a pair of home games from Friday Harbor on Friday night, which officially clinches three of the four playoff berths.

On the boys’ side, Coupeville and La Conner are in, while Friday Harbor is eliminated after the Wolverines blew a 20-point lead and fell 59-57 to the Braves.

On the girls’ side, La Conner is in after a 65-18 romp, with Coupeville and Friday Harbor still fighting for the other spot.

Seeding is still up for grabs on both sides, however.

Coupeville closes the regular season next week, hosting La Conner Tuesday, Feb. 7, before island-hopping to Friday Harbor Feb. 10.

The Wolf boys clinch the #1 seed with a win in that first game.

Meanwhile, Coupeville’s girls need to sweep both games next week to have a shot at being #1 but need just a victory over Friday Harbor — who they beat 47-27 first time around — to claim the #2 seed.

If there any ties, teams will play a tiebreaker game, at a neutral site, Saturday, Feb. 11.

 

Where the round-robin sits heading into the final week:

 

Boys basketball:

School Vs. 2B
Coupeville 2-0
La Conner 2-1
Friday Harbor 0-3

 

Girls basketball:

School Vs. 2B
La Conner 3-0
Coupeville 1-1
Friday Harbor 0-3

 

Bi-district brackets:

Boys — http://www.nw1a2bathletics.com/m2/tourn.php?act=vt&tid=3810

Girls — http://www.nw1a2bathletics.com/m2/tourn.php?act=vt&tid=3809

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Milestones met, win welcomed

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , , on January 28, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Older brother Hunter (right) was in the gym Friday to witness Logan Downes crack the 600-point club. (Angie Downes photo)

Never celebrate too early.

In other words, if it’s a 32-minute game, you might not want to act like you’ve just won a state title six minutes into play.

That’s a lesson the Friday Harbor High School varsity boys’ basketball team, and its fans, learned painfully Friday night.

The Wolverines all but stormed the floor after a bucket gave them the lead at 10-8, only to then get slapped into oblivion by host Coupeville, which promptly snatched back control en route to a 59-34 win.

Putting eight guys into the scoring column, the hometown Wolves won for the ninth time in their last 11 games and get to 11-6 on the season.

Not only was it nice to win in front of an overflow home crowd after playing four straight road rumbles, knocking off Friday Harbor has major playoff implications for Coupeville.

The seven-team Northwest 2B/1B League has three 2B schools, and two earn berths to the bi-district tourney based on how they do against each other in the regular season.

Coupeville is now 2-0 in the round-robin, La Conner is 1-1, and Friday Harbor 0-2.

The Braves and Wolverines play again Feb. 3, with Coupeville hosting La Conner Feb. 7, then travelling to Friday Harbor for the regular-season finale Feb. 10.

In between that, CHS has a road game Feb. 2 against non-league foe Auburn Adventist Academy.

Wolf hoops coaches (left to right) Hunter Smith, Greg White, Randy Bottorff, and Brad Sherman watch the action on Coupeville vs. Cancer night. (Deb Sherman photo)

Friday’s game plan was all about the Wolves putting themselves into position to earn the #1 seed out of District 1, and Brad Sherman’s squad delivered.

Coupeville jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead, with Logan Downes snapping the net on a jumper, Alex Murdy sinking a long three-ball, and William Davidson powering through the paint for a bucket.

The third of those baskets earned the loudest shrieks from the audience as “The Show Pony,” a killer on the boards who also is a deft passer and drawer of offensive fouls on rivals, put up a rare shot.

Hauling in a pass from Downes and going strong to the rim, Davidson delighted his large, fairly rabid fan base, who were still hyperventilating several minutes later.

That was when Friday Harbor made its move, stirring things up with a 10-1 run to claim the lead and start the chest-thumping.

Said celebration didn’t last long, however, as another Murdy three-ball and a pair of Dominic Coffman free throws capped the quarter, sending CHS to the bench up 13-10.

Friday Harbor did knot things up at 13-13, but never got back in front, as the Wolves had an answer for every one of their rival’s moves.

Downes tickled the twines on a three-ball, cracking the 600-point club, before fellow junior Nick Guay grabbed the microphone and did a saucy solo.

Reeling off nine straight points on his own, with buckets set up by a Cole White feed, a Chase Anderson steal, and a Davidson rebound, the lanky leaper was feelin’ it.

Murdy spun his defender around with a nasty move before swooping to kiss the ball off the glass, and Coupeville’s lead was out to double digits.

While Friday Harbor trimmed the deficit back to 28-20 by halftime, the third quarter was a heartbreaker for the visitors.

Downes and White combined for 16 points as Coupeville ripped off a game-busting 21-8 run coming out of the break, and any chance of a comeback crumbled.

The best bucket was a wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am special.

Zane Oldenstadt corralled a loose ball, flipped it to White, then watched as the Wolf point guard flung a crosscourt pass to Downes, who spun, hopped around a defender and banked the ball home.

Or maybe the best bucket was Downes bringing the ball downcourt, draining the final seconds of the quarter, then flicking a running one-hander off the glass to beat the buzzer and drive the final stake through the heart.

From there it was time to coast home and hand Sherman his 50th win as a high school hoops coach, the Wolves punctuating things with a sensational steal and breakaway bucket from the always-aggressive Murdy.

Coupeville’s scoring sheet was properly balanced, with Downes (18), Murdy (15), Guay (9), White (8), Jonathan Valenzuela (4), Coffman (2), Davidson (2) and Chase Anderson (1) all contributing to the cause.

Ryan Blouin and Jermiah Copeland joined Oldenstadt in doing the important little things necessary to set up their teammates scoring.

While the win, and its help to the playoff cause, was the main focus, several Wolves hit personal milestones in the game.

White notched his 150th career varsity point, while Murdy (386) moves closer to the 400-point club and is now the #65 scorer all-time for a program launched in 1917.

And Downes? His torrid run continues.

When he walked off the floor Friday, he did so sitting with 390 points this season.

That’s the most by any Wolf since Makana Stone netted 427 in 2015-2016, and the most by a CHS boy since Mike Bagby knocked down 414 back in 2004-2005.

If Downes were to head to Siberia tonight, his season would be the 16th best in school history.

Only 11 Wolf boys, and two girls, have scored more in a season, with Brianne King (446, 442) and Randy Keefe (398, 397) having done it twice.

One of the guys still ahead of Downes, for the moment, is his head coach, with Brad Sherman shredding the nets for 396 points in 2002-2003.

Career-wise, Downes passes another one of his coaches, Greg White, jumping from #36 to #31 all-time.

Going from 596 to 614 points Friday, he vaults past Brian Miller (597), Joe Whitney (601), Denny Zylstra (602), Greg White (604), and John O’Grady (611).

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Seniors spark Wolf girls to important win

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on January 27, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Maddie Georges rattled the rims Friday for a season-high 16 points. (Karen Carlson photo)

Big moments are made for big stars.

Playing in their next-to-last regular-season home game Friday, Coupeville High School’s seniors combined to score all but four of their team’s points in a 47-27 romp over visiting Friday Harbor.

Hitting six three-balls while playing inspired defense, the Wolves led virtually start to finish while grabbing a win which has huge playoff implications.

The victory lifts Coupeville to 7-8 on the season, but it was whom it came against which matters most.

The Northwest 2B/1B League has three 2B schools, and two earn berths to the bi-district tourney based on how they do against each other in the regular season.

La Conner is 2-0 in the round-robin, Coupeville is 1-1, and Friday Harbor 0-2.

The Braves and Wolverines play again Feb. 3, with Coupeville hosting La Conner Feb. 7, then travelling to Friday Harbor for the regular-season finale Feb. 10.

In between that, CHS has a road game Feb. 2 against non-league foe Auburn Adventist Academy.

Friday’s win give the Wolves a big leg up on Friday Harbor in the scramble for a playoff berth, and Megan Richter’s squad made a statement.

Alita Blouin splashed home a three-ball to open the game, before Coupeville fell behind for the one and only time, trailing 5-3.

That was when senior point guard Maddie Georges stepped up, muttered “give me the dang ball” (I’d like to think…), and flipped the script.

First, she pegged a floor-long pass to Ryanne Knoblich for a game-tying layup, before knocking down back-to-back treys, which each shot coming from a different side of the floor.

In between the game-altering bombs, Georges also made off with a steal, collected a floor burn or two, and delivered withering side-eye to anyone who dared to step into her path.

So, a typical day for the calm, yet fiery one.

Heading into the first break with an 11-5 lead, Georges and her associates kept attacking in the second quarter, with Knoblich knocking down a pair of buckets to kick things off.

One of her baskets was set up by a slick inbounds pass from Lyla Stuurmans, the other came courtesy of Knoblich wrestling a rebound out of the hands of a taller rival.

Coupeville as a team has struggled at the free throw line all season, but on this night, Georges calmly sank four in a row, signaling a positive change.

The lead was up to double-digits by halftime, with the Wolves heading to the locker room with a 23-11 advantage, but CHS was just getting warmed up.

Blouin and Georges hit back-to-back daggers from behind the arc in the third quarter, the second and fourth treys of the night for the Wolf sharpshooters, respectively.

Coupeville’s lead ballooned to 14, was trimmed back to eight for a brief moment, then settled in at a comfortable 35-24 heading into the fourth.

That final frame belonged completely to the Wolves, as they held Friday Harbor to just a single field goal over the game’s final eight minutes.

By contrast, Blouin was on a tear, dropping runners in the paint, while Coupeville also hit four free throws and capped things with a beautiful bank shot from Stuurmans.

Scoring all of her points from either the three-point line or the charity stripe, Georges led the way with a season-high 16, while Blouin was hot on her heels with 15.

Knoblich made it three Wolves with double digits, banking in 10, while Gwen Gustafson capped the senior attack with a bucket.

Sophomores Mia Farris and Stuurmans chipped in with two points apiece, with Carolyn Lhamon and Katie Marti also seeing floor time for the Wolves.

While the playoff-positive win was the big headline, two CHS players achieved personal milestones as well.

Blouin, who has played 17 varsity games, cracked the 150-point club and now sits with 159.

Georges, meanwhile, moves into exclusive company, becoming the #30 scorer in CHS girls’ basketball history for a program started in 1974.

With her performance Friday, she jumps to 343 career points, passing all-timers Taniel Lamb (330), Misty Sellgren (331), Amanda Allmer (331), and Kailey Kellner (339).

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Road warriors slam pedal through the metal

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , on January 25, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Jermiah Copeland looks for an open man. (Chloe Marzocca photo)

They bounced back in a big way.

Coming off a tough road loss at Mount Vernon Christian, the Coupeville High School varsity boys’ basketball team rebounded to drill host Concrete Tuesday.

Capping a four-game road trip, the Wolves won for the eighth time in their last 10 games, demolishing the Lions 75-22.

With 10 different players scoring, including sophomore Hunter Bronec tossing in his first varsity bucket, CHS gets to 3-2 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 10-6 overall.

Up next is a return home, for the first time in two weeks, and a rumble with Friday Harbor Jan. 27.

That Friday-night tilt has major playoff implications, as Coupeville tries to move a step closer to clinching District 1’s top seed for the bi-district tourney.

Two of three 2B schools from the NWL punch playoff tickets, with the games between the trio of teams the deciding factor.

Coupeville is 1-0 in that saucy round-robin dance, La Conner 1-1, and Friday Harbor 0-1 with the Wolves hosting the Braves Feb. 7, then traveling to Friday Harbor Feb. 10 for the regular season finale.

Tuesday’s battle in the town Leonardo Di Caprio and Robert De Niro made infamous in This Boy’s Life was a romp from start to finish, save for one brief spell in the first quarter.

Jumping out to a 9-0 lead, Coupeville didn’t let Concrete score until the 4:40 mark of the opening frame, only to see the Lions then slap home seven unanswered points.

If they were fazed, the Wolves didn’t show it, merely going right back to work.

Nick Guay stopped the brief bleeding with a layup off of a lob from Alex Murdy, then the Wolf junior came back around to cap a 13-2 run by firing a full court pass to a sprinting Murdy, who beat the buzzer by a step.

Up 22-9 at the first break, Coupeville continued to push its lead out, combining three-balls from Ryan Blouin and Logan Downes with hard-fought buckets in the paint courtesy Jonathan Valenzuela and Cole White.

The halftime advantage was 41-17, though it could have been bigger.

Guay bounded high, snagged an offensive board and drilled the put-back jumper at the buzzer, only to have hometown refs wave off his highlight reel play, claiming it left his fingers too late.

Not that Coupeville needed the extra bucket, as it broke Concrete’s spirit in the third quarter, rolling up a 27-0 advantage across eight frantic minutes.

Murdy was wheelin’ and dealin’, firing beautiful set-up passes to his teammates, with seven different Wolves tallying points in the frame.

Leading 68-17 headed into the fourth, Coupeville coach Brad Sherman, who had been liberally substituting all night, gave his support players a chance to own the quarter.

Hunter Bronec is in a hurry to get somewhere. (Chloe Marzocca photo)

Jermiah Copeland splashed home his first three-ball as a Wolf, banking the ball off the glass while doing so, while both Bronec brothers, Hunter and Hurlee, got extensive floor time.

With Coupeville’s starters playing limited minutes, the scoring sheet was super-balanced.

Downes led the way with a game-high 20, while Murdy banked in 14, and White snapped the net for 10.

Dominic Coffman (7), Valenzuela (7), Blouin (5), Copeland (5), Guay (3), Hunter Bronec (2), and Zane Oldenstadt (2) also scored, with William Davidson and Quinten Simpson-Pilgrim pounding the boards.

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