Ashlie Shank will not be buffaloed by a defender, thank you very much. (John Fisken photos)
Maddy Hilkey was hungry for a win, and she helped her squad get one Wednesday night.
A clean sweep.
Sparked by stellar defensive play, the Coupeville High School JV girls’ basketball squad nipped visiting Orcas Island 22-18, giving the Wolves four wins in four games Wednesday night.
The young guns used strong surges in the second and fourth quarters to pull away from the Vikings, then sealed the deal with a last stand.
One of Orcas’ strongest players drove the baseline in the game’s final minute, looking for a quick bucket to keep the Vikings alive.
Instead she found the Great Wall of Skyler and paid the price.
Back after missing a week with an illness, Skyler Lawrence planted herself in her chosen defensive spot and refused to budge, even when the wayward Orcas player slammed right into her.
The Viking went down, hard, the ball went out of bounds and Lawrence’s reputation as a hard-nosed enforcer added another chapter.
Solid defensive play such as that and a very effective one-person press run by Kyla Briscoe which resulted in a key turnover, was the difference as the JV won its first game of the season.
The Wolves, now 1-3, led from start to finish, but needed a 7-4 run in the fourth to nail down the win.
“As in any good JV game, there was a lot of back and forth without much scoring,” said Coupeville coach Amy King. “Our defense was really strong, stopping any drives they tried to take.
“We had a lot of strong rebounds too,” she added. “We took care of the ball better than in our last two games, so that was good to see.”
King is famous for making sure every one of her developing players scores during the season, and Wednesday she got freshman Lindsey Laxton in the book.
“Right place, right time, taking a nice pass from Ema (Smith) and in goes her first basket ever,” King said. “Lindsey has never played basketball before, the bench erupted and she didn’t crack a smile. It was awesome!”
Ashlie Shank and Sarah Wright paced the Wolves with five points apiece, while Briscoe added four.
Maddy Hilkey, Lauren Rose, Smith and Laxton each collected a bucket of their own.
Lawrence snared six rebounds, followed by Wright with five and Smith with three.
The Wolves hit the boards hard as a team, with Hilkey (2), Briscoe (2), Brisa Herrera (2), Nicole Lester (1) and Brittany Powers (1) getting their hands on balls.
Shank pilfered two steals and Smith rejected a pair of Viking shots.
Coupeville Sports 