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Posts Tagged ‘Orcas Island’

Wolves topple Orcas, stay undefeated

Posted in Volleyball, tagged , , , , on September 16, 2021| 1 Comment »

Olivia Schaffeld and her friends are a pristine 3-0 on the season. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

It wasn’t flawless, but it didn’t need to be.

Rising to the occasion in crucial moments, the Coupeville High School varsity volleyball squad overcame a few hiccups Thursday, running visiting Orcas Island off the floor in straight sets.

Even with a few misfires along the way, the Wolves never trailed, not even by a point, and convincingly won 25-14, 25-19, 25-16.

The victory lifts Coupeville to 3-0 on the season and keeps it atop the Northwest 2B/1B League standings.

Facing an “energetic” Orcas team which didn’t have many heavy hitters, but did possess a lot of moxie, the Wolves responded to every surge by the visitors.

“We had somewhat shaky execution at times, but we worked our way out of trouble, which is a big positive,” said Coupeville coach Cory Whitmore.

In particular, he praised the connection between setter Maddie Georges and big hitter Lucy Tenore, who popped for a team-high seven kills.

“You can see Maddie feels very confident setting for Lucy, and they have a very solid connection,” Whitmore said.

That duo got their team going in the early stages Thursday, with Georges opening the match at the service stripe, and Tenore and Olivia Schaffeld connecting almost immediately on winners to fuel a quick 3-0 run.

Two turns later, it was Schaffeld with the ball in her hand, and her four-point tear at the line sent Coupeville sprinting towards a first-set win.

Jill Prince was a powerful ally, teaming up with Tenore to stuff Orcas at the net, then climbing the ladder solo to thrash the stuffing out of the ball on a later play.

It was an equal opportunity kind of night, with virtually everyone in a Wolf uniform pulling off at least one crowd-pleasing play as things unfolded.

Whether it was Lyla Stuurmans leaning far back over her head to catch a falling ball, before firing off a winner which sliced ‘n diced the Vikings, or Georges twisting in mid-air to flip a shot over the heads of the defense, the highlight reel was full.

Schaffeld won the “best reaction” award, punching a ball inches from her face to save a point, while Tenore prowled the net like a wild beast unleashed.

Ending the opening set with back-to-back winners, the junior powerhouse then immediately bounced back to open set #2 with yet another knee-buckling kill.

Coupeville jumped out fast — romping to a 5-0 lead, then stretching it to 13-5 — and sauntered in for the set win, with Taygin Jump and Alita Blouin peppering their foes with unreturnable serves along the way.

The third set was more of the same, with Coupeville simply too deep and too talented for the very-scrappy Vikings to derail.

Freshman Savina Wells, who had been busy poppin’ shots all match from the left side, delivered a gorgeous ace which soared high, then dropped fast, successfully nicking the last flake of paint off the backline.

That caused proud papa Lyle Wells to fist punch the air in delight while dancing atop the top row of the bleachers, a perfect punctuation note to another night of Wolf success.

 

Thursday stats:

Alita Blouin — 14 digs, 2 assists, 1 ace
Maddie Georges — 1 kill, 9 digs, 10 assists, 3 aces
Taygin Jump — 2 digs
Ryanne Knoblich — 5 digs
Grey Peabody — 1 kill, 1 block assist
Jill Prince — 5 kills, 3 block assists
Olivia Schaffeld — 1 kill, 5 digs, 3 aces
Lyla Stuurmans — 2 kills, 3 digs
Lucy Tenore — 7 kills, 2 digs, 1 ace, 3 block assists
Savina Wells — 4 kills, 3 digs, 3 aces, 1 block assist

“Let the bodies hit the floor!”

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Young Wolves gobble up Vikings

Posted in Volleyball, tagged , , , , on September 16, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Taylor Brotemarkle delivered another strong all-around performance Thursday as the Coupeville JV spikers won their third-straight match. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Ruthless.

Or, exactly the way you like to see them play.

Taking advantage of every Orcas Island error, while not committing a whole lot of their own Thursday, the Coupeville High School JV volleyball squad strolled to a straight-sets win.

Dominating play from start to finish, the Wolf spikers captured a 25-15, 25-10 home victory to remain perfect on the season.

Now 3-0, Coupeville’s JV has yet to drop a set in Northwest 2B/1B League action.

After polishing off Concrete and Mount Vernon Christian in earlier matches, the Wolves jumped all over the Vikings.

Orcas stayed close for a half-second, remaining within 6-5 in the first set, before Coupeville made its move.

When the Wolves struck, they did so with power and precision.

The first big blow came courtesy freshman Mia Farris, who popped a spike right down the middle of the floor for a winner, grabbing control of service from the visitors.

That sent Gwen Gustafson to the line, and she was electric, running off seven straight points on her serve.

The opening salvo was a crisp ace which dropped from the heavens and skidded away from the Orcas hitters, while three other points during the run came on serves which the Vikings also couldn’t get back into play.

One of the few times the visitors staged a mini-rally off of a Gustafson serve, the back-and-forth finished prematurely.

That’s because Wolf frosh Madison McMillan promptly rose up and unleashed a spike which crashed into the back corner for a decisive rally-ender.

Madison McMillan filled up the stat sheet.

From there, Farris, Taylor Brotemarkle, and Issabel Johnson all had strong runs at the service line, as CHS closed out the opening set with conviction.

The prettiest point came courtesy Brotemarkle, who bounded into the air as she approached the net, deftly dropping a hook shot over the heads of several Vikings who could do little but watch the ball bounce merrily away.

While Coupeville let Orcas hang around for a bit in set one, it did no such thing in round two.

Brotemarkle fired off some nasty serves — she had a team-high six aces on the night — and the Wolves jumped out to a 6-0 lead, effectively ending things right from the get-go.

Jada Heaton sparkled in set #2, twice teaming up with a friend to deny Orcas at the net.

The first block was made by a team-up between Heaton and Katie Marti, while the second featured Aby Wood getting in on the action.

Toss in a spike from Gustafson which sliced off a rival player’s knee-cap, and one from McMillan which blew a large crater in the hardwood floor as it slammed down, and Coupeville coasted in for the win.

A look at the stat sheet backs up what fans saw with their own eyes — it was a remarkably consistent team-wide attack, sure to make coach Ashley Menges dream happy dreams.

McMillan pounded home four kills to pace the Wolves, while she and Johnson each had three digs.

Marti topped the team with two assists, with Farris and McMillan both collecting three aces to go with the six from Brotemarkle.

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All eyes on the prize

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , , on June 5, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Grady Rickner was one of four Wolves who scored in double digits Saturday afternoon. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

What a week.

Three wins in four days, with the latest triumph coming Saturday on Orcas Island, has carried the Coupeville High School varsity boys basketball team into first-place in the Northwest 2B/1B League.

Using a withering defense, and the second 38-point performance this season from junior sharpshooter Hawthorne Wolfe, CHS rolled to a resounding 86-56 win.

Payback for an early-season loss to the Vikings, the victory lifts the Wolves to 6-3 and gives them total control of their own destiny.

While Mount Vernon Christian has the same 6-3 record as Coupeville, the Wolves swept the season series from the Hurricanes, giving them an edge.

CHS also has three games left to play, while MVC only has two, having declined to host Orcas Island this season after that school requested no fans be present during the ongoing pandemic.

Friday Harbor, which comes to Whidbey Tuesday, June 8, and Orcas, whose season ended prematurely and in flames Saturday, sit at 5-3, with La Conner at 4-4.

Darrington (2-3) and Concrete (0-9) — which are Coupeville’s final two foes — round out the league standings.

Coupeville entered this week with a .500 record, but that was very deceptive.

The Wolves were essentially two plays from being 5-1 and not 3-3, with their only solid loss coming when Orcas went bonkers from behind the three-point line for one quarter.

Saturday, CHS coach Brad Sherman preached defense, defense, and more defense, and his players took it to heart, shutting down the Vikings snipers and never allowing them to find a rhythm.

“Great team basketball today,” Sherman said. “Proud of how our guys are coming together – especially on the defensive end.

“They worked their tails off this week!”

By contrast, Wolfe and his running mates were feeling it, and then some, combining to rain down 12 three-balls.

Eight of those came from the high-flying, jitterbugging Hawk, who was in full-on Pistol Pete Maravich mode, while Xavier Murdy netted two, and Logan Martin and Daniel Olson also flipped the nets from distance.

For that matter, everything was dropping for Coupeville.

Inside, outside, from the parking lot. Didn’t matter.

As long as it wasn’t a free throw, as the Wolves only went to the line once — a season-low from a squad which often shoots a lot of charity shots.

But then again, that’s probably because CHS launched most of its shots before the Orcas defense could get set long enough to consider fouling anyone.

Grady Rickner opened the scoring with a pair of quick runners, but the Wolves found themselves in a hole, for the briefest of moments.

Cue the tsunami.

Martin swished an in-close jumper, launching a game-busting 14-0 run which included Wolfe’s first two treys, and the floodgates were open.

Both Murdy boys were on fire, with Alex soaring in for a breakaway layup off a Hawk pass, followed by Xavier pump-faking his defender into the stands before rolling hard to the hoop for a bucket.

Strollin’ and rollin’ to his own unique beat, Wolfe delivered the dagger.

Boppin’ up court, he watched the clock tick down, then spun and made sweet love to the net, nailing a very-long, buzzer-beating three-ball which sent the Coupeville JV players into a screaming fit.

Coupeville kept shooting, kept hitting, and kept harassing the life out of the Vikings while on defense, sending the lead out to 42-29 at the half.

Olson, a senior who has found his niche using his long arms to shut down opponent’s passing lanes, tossed in five points in the second frame, as CHS spread out the offensive love.

Just in case they forgot about him, Wolfe emerged from the locker room with a slight smile on his face and a burning desire to put on a shooting clinic for all gathered.

Rifling four successful shots from behind the arc, with at least two of those from a distance Steph Curry would have approved of, Wolfe outscored Orcas 16-11 in the third quarter.

Add buckets for Martin, Grady Rickner, and both Xavier and Alex Murdy, and the rout was on.

Six players scored in the final quarter as Coupeville stretched the final margin to 30, sending an emphatic message out to what has been a very-competitive league.

Wolfe’s 38 matches his total from the season-opener at MVC, and is just 10 off of the school single-game record of 48, set by Jeff Stone in the pre-three-ball world of 1970.

With the scoring burst, Hawk hit several milestones Saturday, joining the 600-point club, moving from #36 to #30 on the CHS boys career scoring list, and passing one of his coaches as he did so.

Now with 625 points and counting, Wolfe skips past Gabe McMurray (592), Mike Syreen (594), Brian Miller (597), Joe Whitney (601), current CHS assistant coach Greg White (604), and John O’Grady (611).

And he wasn’t the only Coupeville player to crack an exclusive club, as Xavier Murdy tossed in 12, giving him 204 varsity points.

The Wolves had four players in double figures, with Grady Rickner and Alex Murdy each going off for 10, while Olson and Martin netted seven apiece.

Sage Downes sank Coupeville’s remaining bucket, with Logan Downes and TJ Rickner getting floor time for the surging Wolves.

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Another day, another victory

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , , on June 5, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Logan Downes tossed in 19 points Saturday, sparking the Coupeville JV to its fourth-straight win. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

The streak is a living thing.

Dominating host Orcas Island in three of four quarters Saturday, the Coupeville High School JV boys basketball squad captured a 45-38 win, its fourth-straight triumph.

The red-hot Wolves will carry a 4-3 record into their season finale next Tuesday, June 8, when they host Friday Harbor.

While the CHS varsity has three games left on its schedule, two of those schools — Concrete and Darrington — don’t have active JV programs, limiting the times the Wolf young guns get to play.

Coupeville took advantage of having an opponent to square off with Saturday, jumping out to a 13-8 lead after one quarter of play.

Freshman Logan Downes had the hot hand early, dropping in five points during the run, but the best was yet to come for him.

Orcas proved resilient, climbing back into the game and actually taking the lead before halftime.

A 15-6 Vikings run staked the home team to a 23-19 advantage at the break, but Downes was lurking in the shadows, ready to blow everything up.

Raining down pain from every angle, he promptly went off for 12 points in the third quarter alone, pushing the Wolves back in front at 32-29.

Once it had the lead, Coupeville held on to it, with six different players scoring in the final frame, led by Cole White, who nailed a pair of three-balls to keep the Vikings at bay.

Downes finished with a game-high 19, with White (8), Jonathan Valenzuela (7), Dominic Coffman (6), Ryan Blouin (2), Nick Guay (2), and William Davidson (1) also scoring.

Quinten Simpson-Pilgrim and Zane Oldenstadt rounded out the Wolf players to see floor time.

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Unforgiving rims deny JV girls

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on June 5, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Morgan Stevens was one of five Wolves who scored Saturday in a JV game on Orcas Island. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Some games the basket likes you, some games it doesn’t.

Unfortunately for the Coupeville High School JV girls basketball squad, Saturday was one of those latter times.

With the rims on Orcas Island being unforgiving, the Wolves, who were also missing two starters, fell 45-22 to the Vikings.

The loss drops the CHS young guns to 1-3 heading into their season finale at home Tuesday, June 8.

Friday Harbor, which Coupeville thrashed the first time around, is the opponent in that one.

Saturday, the Wolves were without Katie Marti and Madison McMillan, but the 10 girls who made the long trip were ready and rarin’ to go, and gave maximum effort.

“We had a lot of good shots, but nothing seemed to fall for us,” said CHS coach Megan Smith.

“Missing a few key players forced some girls to play in different positions and sometimes it was a scramble,” she added. “But, as always, proud of what we did.”

Orcas jumped out to a 9-4 lead after one quarter of play, then stretched the margin to 24-13 by the half and 29-19 heading into the fourth.

A 16-3 tear by the Vikings over the course of the game’s final eight minutes makes the final margin look worse than it really was most of the way.

Coupeville was led by 8th grader Lyla Stuurmans, who banked in 14 points, including all nine of her team’s points in the second quarter.

She had a bit of a duel with Orcas gunner Lili Malo, who also tallied nine in the second frame, finishing with a game-high 20 on her home floor.

Jessenia Camarena (3), Morgan Stevens (2), Desi Ramirez (2), and Reese Wilkinson (1) also scored for Coupeville, with Bryley Gilbert, Skylar Parker, Pam Morrell, Kassidy Upchurch, and Kayla Arnold all seeing floor time.

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