Teagan Calkins? There ain’t ever been another one quite like her. (Jackie Saia photo)
It ended the only way it could, the only way it should.
“A fly got in my mouth! And it doesn’t want to get out!!”
And with that Teagan Calkins, one of the best to ever wear a Coupeville High School softball uniform, coughed her way to the finish line in her final diamond game on the prairie.
Of course, the Wolf catcher also smashed three hits and threw a runner out trying to steal second, powering the Wolves to a 15-0 mercy-ruled win over visiting Orcas Island.
But the knowledge that the irrepressible Calkins, “The Red Dragon” who has carved out a legendary career of high achievement and great joy, accidentally carried a pesky piece of the prairie away with her, doing its best to dodge her gulps of water?
Chef’s kiss…
Of course, Calkins and the Wolves are far from done.
With Wednesday’s win, coming on Senior Night for its catcher, Coupeville gets to 10-0 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 16-1 overall.
Ranked #7 in the latest RPI rankings from the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association, the Wolves have the most wins of any 2B diamond program, with non-conference road trips to Klahowya, South Whidbey, and East Jefferson still left on the schedule.
After that comes the district and state tourneys, with CHS softball going to the big dance in back-to-back seasons for the first time ever.
But first they had one last game to play in front of their hyped-up fans, and the day was a smash.
Flawless weather — the prairie offering one tantalizing taste of sunshine after a season of freezing wind and dark skies — the return of power-hitting Capri Anter to the lineup after a stint on injured reserve, and a soaring performance of the national anthem sung by Wolf first-baseman Ava Lucero.
Adeline Maynes was prowling the pitcher’s circle, firing BBs into Calkins glove, and only got into danger once during a 10-strikeout performance.
That came in the top of the first, when Orcas loaded the bags thanks to a walk and a couple of shallow hits.
To which Maynes said, “Not today, sister,” and promptly ended the frame by pouring liquid heat past a hapless Viking who meekly went down swinging and missing.
Coupeville, which pounded out 18 hits on the afternoon, got on the board quickly, before steadily pulling away.
Three runs in the bottom of the first, with Chelsi Stevens plating one on a sac fly before Sydney Van Dyke and Ava Lucero walloped back-to-back RBI hits, got things started.
Haylee Armstrong, a danger to pitchers everywhere. (Aleksia Jump photo)
Another tally went up on the scoreboard in the second, thanks to Haylee Armstrong smashing a low, sinking liner to center, the ball skidding past the fielder as the Wolf leadoff hitter turned a sure thing double into an inside-the-park home run with a mad dash around the basepaths.
It wouldn’t be Coupeville’s only four-bagger, as Maynes lashed her own tater in the middle of a game-busting 16-batter, 11-run explosion in the third inning.
Like Armstrong, the sophomore hurler spanked the ball hard, then showed off her wheels, careening around third and storming home ahead of the throw.
The big blast was part of a run of six straight Wolf batters collecting a base knock to open the frame, with Calkins, Stevens, and Sydney Van Dyke mashing doubles to provide extra pop.
Before the inning was done, 8th grader Zariyah Allen would collect two hits, Maynes would get nicked by a wayward pitch (payback for the homerun??), and Stevens would launch another laser to left, each Wolf making a major impact.
Up 15-0, CHS got playing time for many of its bench players, while also giving its lone senior two final moments to remember.
In the bottom of the fourth a Viking player, surprised to get on base, attempted to steal second.
Springing up from behind the plate Calkins zipped a missile of a throw right onto the glove of shortstop Cami Van Dyke, who alertly slapped the tag on the incoming runner with the fury of an in-his-prime John Cena, dropping the Viking face-first to the infield dirt with a sweet thump.
Chef’s kiss…
To which Calkins, ever the show woman, turned to a prairie fly minding his own business and said “Hey, you all wanna top that?”
“The Red Dragon” abides. (Jackie Saia photo)
Wednesday stats:
Zariyah Allen — Two singles
Haylee Armstrong — Two singles, one home run
Teagan Calkins — One single, two doubles
Ava Lucero — Three singles
Adeline Maynes — One home run, one walk
Chelsi Stevens — Two doubles
Cami Van Dyke — One single, one walk
Sydney Van Dyke — One single, two doubles
Coupeville Sports 