Skylar Parker works her way through the defense. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)
It was there, then it was gone.
Playing without a key starter Friday night, the Coupeville High School varsity girls’ basketball team got a career-best performance from Madison McMillan, but lost the lead late, falling 36-30 to visiting Friday Harbor.
The loss, coming in the third straight game the Wolves have played without injured #2 scorer Mia Farris, drops the Wolves to 2-5 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 6-12 overall.
It also eliminates CHS from playoff contention, as Friday Harbor (4-3, 6-12) clinches the second and final 2B postseason berth from the NWL, joining La Conner (5-1, 12-6) in heading to the postseason.
Coupeville wraps its season with a non-conference clash with Orting Saturday, followed by a road trip to La Conner Feb. 6.
That will mark the end of the run for Wolf 12th graders Reese Wilkinson, Skylar Parker, and Kayla Arnold, who were honored Friday on Senior Night.
Kayla Arnold was one of three Wolf seniors honored Friday night.
With Farris back in uniform (but not playing) after two games in street clothes, the Wolves fell behind 5-0 early, then kicked things into gear.
Katie Marti banked in a runner to get Coupeville on the board, and she and her squad threw down 14 straight points to claim control of the game.
McMillan’s second bucket of the opening quarter staked CHS to an 11-5 lead at the first break, before Parker buried a three-ball off the glass to open the second frame.
The Wolf offense dried up for a bit after that, allowing Friday Harbor to pull back to within 16-13 at the half, but the Wolves maintained the lead into the final moments of the third quarter.
McMillan was a force all game, knocking down a jumper and turning a rebound into a putback in the third quarter to keep the visitors at bay, but then things broke bad.
Friday Harbor scored the final five points of the frame to force a 22-22 tie heading into the fourth, before the teams traded buckets to open the closing stretch.
Coupeville held its final lead at 28-26 after Lyla Stuurmans fed McMillan, who rolled strong to the hoop for her last basket of the night.
But the Wolves lost their most fearsome scoring weapon with a little under four minutes to play, with Marti fouling out and joining Farris on the bench.
CHS 9th grader Haylee Armstrong kept her squad within 32-30, draining a beauty of a jumper from the side, but in the end, it was the other team’s fab frosh who iced things.
Friday Harbor got Vera Schoultz the ball down low, and the five-foot-eleven tower of power responded, banking in the game-icing bucket and propelling her team to the playoffs.
McMillan didn’t go down without a fight, however, as the Wolf junior made the nets jump for a career-high 14 points in the loss.
Marti (8), Parker (4), Teagan Calkins (2), and Armstrong (2) also scored, with Jada Heaton, Wilkinson, Stuurmans, and Arnold seeing floor time for Megan Richter’s squad.
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