Ja’Kenya Hoskins (left) pops over from track practice to get a photo with Wolf softball sensation Izzy Wells. (Katy Wells photo)
The breeze was cold, and the bats were hot.
Fueled up on hot dogs and cupcakes, the Coupeville High School varsity softball team ignored relentless prairie wind Friday, bashing 34 hits on Senior Night during a doubleheader sweep of visiting Orcas Island.
In control from first pitch to last, the Wolves strolled to 17-1 and 19-2 wins in games mercy-ruled after the top of the fourth inning.
With the twin thumpings, Coupeville gets to 7-0 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 15-2 overall.
The Wolves close the regular season with a trip to Darrington next Tuesday, May 3, then turn their gaze to the playoffs.
But first they honored seniors Mckenna Somes, Violette Huegerich, Audrianna Shaw, and Izzy Wells with a pair of romps.
How the day played out:
Game 1:
Playing a 12:30 matinee on a weekday to kick things off meant an early exit from school, and limited fans for the first pitch.
It also meant a bit of a slow start for the Wolves, who scraped out two runs in the first, tacked on six more in the second, then hit their stride with a nine-run burst in the third.
The ball jumped off Coupeville bats, with five different hitters collecting an extra-base hit during an all-out assault on Orcas pitching.
Izzy Wells pounded three doubles, and Shaw smacked a pair of two-baggers, but it was freshman Savina Wells who rifled an inside-the-park home run to drive a huge stake through the visiting Vikings.
The fab frosh zipped a frozen rope to deep center, then churned her way around the basepaths without breaking stride, her long legs crossing home way before the ball arrived back in the infield.
Orcas couldn’t get much going against Wolf hurler Allie Lucero, who whiffed four and kept her foes on their heels with well-placed pitches.
One of the few times the Vikings looked like they might be up to something, Coupeville ended the mini rally by picking a runner off third base, Lucero winging the ball to Madison McMillan for the wham-bam tag.
Mckenna Somes reached base four times Friday. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
Game 2:
With Orcas in town for most of the day, having taken a 6:45 AM ferry as it Island-hopped, Coupeville hosted a between-games barbeque for softball and baseball players, as well as assorted freeloader writer types.
Then, after a tribute to the 12th graders, the Wolf sluggers went right back to work.
This time, Coupeville dumped eight runs on the board in the first, settled for four more in the second, then capped the day with a seven-spot in the third.
Walks were the currency of choice in the nightcap, with the Wolves drawing 15 free passes, led by McMillan and Huegerich netting three apiece.
The latter was twice bonked by wayward pitches, with the second one nailing her in the batting helmet.
“Not again!” said her mom, as the tough-as-nails Huegerich ambled down to first, shaking her head back and forth as she did.
The Wolves still had their bats going when the ball was near the strike zone, rapping out 12 more base knocks, with Somes, Shaw, and Mia Farris collecting doubles.
Shaw, enjoying herself immensely in the final home game of her stellar prep career, alternated between hitting righty and lefty.
Despite not normally being a switch hitter, the senior centerfielder held up rather well, slapping a pair of hits while trying out the less-comfortable left side of the plate.
McMillan also stole home twice in the game, the second time bouncing off both the catcher and umpire as she successfully bowled over anyone and everyone in her pursuit of tapping home plate.
“Next time … next time I want you to slide,” said Wolf coach Kevin McGranahan, with a small smile.
The Orcas catcher, freshman Molina Stone, recovered to make the defensive play of the game, crashing into the fence behind home as she snagged a fast-falling foul ball over her head.
And then, at 5:21 PST an era ended on the windswept prairie, as McGranahan went out to lift Izzy Wells after she recorded the first out in the final half-inning.
The calm leader of the Wolves, the Izzinator is a rare young woman.
She pitched CHS to state as a freshman, saw a pandemic erase her sophomore season and slash her junior campaign in half, and now is writing a mega-successful final chapter in her high school career.
Coupeville is 42-12 since Izzy stepped onto the diamond, and she’s not done yet.
But, for a moment, as her teammates hugged her, as a now-overflowing fan section hollered for her, and as her faithful pooch gazed at her adoringly from the sideline, the elder Miss Wells got a moment well-deserved, and very much earned.
Friday stats:
Taylor Brotemarkle — 2 singles, 2 walks
Teagan Calkins — 1 double
Mia Farris — 2 singles, 1 double
Gwen Gustafson — 1 walk
Violette Huegerich — 4 walks
Allie Lucero — 1 single, 1 double, 2 walks
Madison McMillan — 3 singles, 1 double, 3 walks
Melanie Navarro — 2 singles, 2 walks
Sofia Peters — 1 single, 1 walk
Audrianna Shaw — 3 singles, 3 doubles
Mckenna Somes — 2 singles, 1 double, 1 walk
Izzy Wells — 2 singles, 3 doubles, 1 walk
Savina Wells — 4 singles, 1 home run, 1 walk
Melanie Navarro sends the softball flying far away. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
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