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Posts Tagged ‘Sequim’

(Bad) Wolves beat (good) Wolves

Posted in Baseball, tagged , , , , on March 27, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Landon Roberts played strongly while patrolling the outfield Wednesday. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Welcome to Willie Smith Day, sort of.

The Coupeville High School Athletic Director was a busy bee buzzing around the prairie Wednesday afternoon.

First, he brought me both candy and a sizzlin’ batch of donated DVDs — “Dick Tracy vs. Cueball” to “True Grit” to “Willy Wonka” and much more!

Then, he watched his old-old team (Sequim) beat his old team (Coupeville) 10-0 in a baseball battle played out in front of former CHS greats like Bill Jarrell and Sandy Roberts.

With two packs of Wolves scrapping, it created some confusion for fans as they hollered support.

Even more reason Coupeville should mix it up and find a hip new mascot like the Mighty Mussels or Mosquitos or Geoducks and sell a ton of merch to hipsters across America.

Create a cartoon character featuring a Penn Cove mussel, flexing its muscles, and slap that sucker on t-shirts, mugs, and hoodies and sell ’em from Bangor to Bangladesh.

Rake in that sweet, sweet Mighty Mussels moola, and there’s your balanced budget right there, baby!

But anyway, back in reality — where I scored DVDs featuring both Clint Eastwood and One Direction — Wednesday’s non-conference tilt was a fairly one-sided one.

Sequim, reppin’ a 2A school, outhit the 2B Wolves from Cow Town 9-3, earned a 9-1 advantage in walks, and played perfect defense while Coupeville committed five errors.

The visitors, who packed the bleachers with fans, opened the game with a quick one-two shot, pushing across a pair of runs in the top of the first to seize an early advantage.

Meanwhile the hometown Wolves had a little trouble getting their own offense kick-started.

The first trip through the lineup produced just one baserunner from nine at-bats, and it only happened because of a great deal of pain.

CHS shortstop Cole White got blasted by a wayward pitch, the ball burrowing nice and deep into his Gonzaga-bound flesh.

As he hobbled down to first, waves of pain rolling out of every pore on his body, even his mom, Morgan, averted her eyes and grimaced.

Her pale prairie prince survived — he’s a tough kid as shown by the 1,371 times he bled during basketball season — but Cole will likely have a deeply impressive bruise to show off in the morning.

“You wore the pitch. Respect.” (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Unable to bring White home, Coupeville at least held the line on defense, thwarting a potential steal of home in the top of the second.

With the bags juiced, a Sequim runner tried to catch CHS pitcher Aiden O’Neill napping, but the sophomore hurler pegged the ball to catcher Peyton Caveness in time.

Trying to avoid the tag, the incoming player awkwardly went airborne at the last moment, then realized too late that, unlike disgraced singer R. Kelly, he really didn’t believe he could fly.

Coupeville third baseman Yohannon Sandles made a nice play on a hot grounder to end the inning, and the good version of the Wolves stayed close for a bit.

Sequim tacked on a run in the third to make it 3-0, then made its move with a three-run fourth and a four-run fifth.

CHS finally got its bats clicking, at least a bit, but couldn’t put enough base knocks together to mount a rally.

Caveness thumped a double but was stranded when Sequim tracked down a long fly ball off the bat of Landon Roberts to end the third.

Jack Porter lashed one of Coupeville’s three hits, while also making a strong defensive play on a long fly to left. (Ember Light photo)

Then, in the fourth, after Sandles and Jack Porter delivered back-to-back one-out singles, Sequim dodged a bullet by pulling off superb defensive stops on hard-hit balls from Coop Cooper and Camden Glover.

O’Neill and senior Seth Woollet got their first major pitching work of the season, while Sequim countered with Ayden Holland, who had himself a day.

The 12th grade chucker held Coupeville largely in check while throwing the shutout, and also reached base four times with two hits and two walks while operating as a batter.

The Cow Town hardball squad, which sits at 2-5 after the loss, continues a busy week with a trip Friday to Concrete for a league clash.

After that, Coupeville’s nine are back on their home field Saturday for an Island rumble with South Whidbey.

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“I believe the athletic department is in good shape”

Posted in A freakin' American hero, tagged , , , , on March 24, 2024| 1 Comment »

Willie Smith, possibly up to shenanigans. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

As he prepares for his exit, let’s hear from the man himself.

It was publicly announced Friday that Willie Smith was stepping down as Coupeville High School/Middle School Athletic Director at the end of the 2023-2024 school year.

That puts a cap on his second run in the role, which began in 2016.

Previously Smith, who plans to teach PE one more year, held the AD position from 2005-2010.

He’s been a coach or AD in Coupeville for three decades, after surprising himself by being hired after thinking he had bombed his initial interview with Cow Town administrators.

But now, the man who left Sequim, his alma mater, to start life on Whidbey Island with wife Cherie, has left a long and lasting legacy.

In his letter to Coupeville Schools Superintendent Steve King and CHS/CMS Principal Geoff Kappes, the man at the forefront of Wolf sports talked about his reasons for stepping down, and his hopes for the future.

 

I am writing to inform you that I am resigning as middle and high school athletic director, effective at the end of the school year.

I am resigning for the following reason(s):

I’ve been either coaching or an athletic director every year of my employment while at Coupeville School District and while it’s been an extremely rewarding and positive experience, I feel like now is the time for me to step away and pursue other challenges.

While choosing to step away I do want to be a resource for the next athletic director during the transitional period.

I believe it will be very important for the next athletic director to have a resource available from somebody that has been in the same position (teacher/athletic director) and can assist them in any way needed.

I believe that the athletic department is in good shape.

It has a solid staff who are caring, professional, hardworking, and understand the importance of athletics in our schools today.

We’ve worked hard to create a positive environment that sees the benefits for all student-athletes no matter what level they may be and values their contributions no matter how big or small.

We have become a fiscally successful and responsible department, tasked with raising nearly all of our own funds for operation without overburdening our very supportive community.

Whomever takes over will be walking into a situation that is successful, education-driven, with high standards and positive contributions to our school district.

With all of that being said the position of athletic director is very vital to the health of our athletic department and continuing the model we have used during my tenure has, and will continue to be, the best model for our programs.

Having a past or current coach as the athletic director creates a bridge for our programs and allows the athletic director to focus on athletics rather than splitting their time among other administrative duties.

While many districts have used the assistant principal/athletic director model, the trend is moving back to a teacher/athletic director model based on the reality of their responsibilities.

Both jobs entail a great amount of time, effort, and focus and the reality is that one area will be focused on while the other is not.

It is my recommendation therefore that Coupeville continue using a current or past coach as the athletic director and not hire an assistant principal to take on the role of athletic director.

I am proud to have served our district, community, and students as the athletic director and as a coach for so many years.

It has been an amazing place for me to raise my family and I am very proud of the work that myself, our coaches, community, and schools have put in to make Coupeville School District a great representative of what a school community should truly look like.

Sincerely,

Willie Smith

“I’m taking my balls and going home!!”

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Young guns never stop scrappin’

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , , , on April 21, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Returning from injury, Lily Leedy had three hits Saturday as Coupeville’s JV softball squad played an off-Island doubleheader. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

The odds were not in their favor.

The Coupeville High School JV softball squad invaded Dry Creek Elementary School in Port Angeles Saturday with a thin roster and two big-time 2A foes awaiting them.

But, while the Wolves fell 18-1 to Sequim and 19-3 to Port Angeles, the experience may pay off down the road for a team of talented, but still-developing players.

Sitting at 3-5 after the doubleheader sweep, Coupeville’s young guns have three games left on their schedule.

They face Cedar Park Christian on the road Apr. 29, then close with a home doubleheader May 2 against Burlington-Edison.

Saturday, the Wolves couldn’t plate as many runners as they might have liked, but they did sting the ball to the tune of 10 hits across the afternoon.

Lily Leedy, Abby Meyers, and Audrianna Shaw each collected three base-knocks apiece, with Leedy getting all of hers in one game against Port Angeles.

It was a nice bounce-back for the feisty freshman, who had missed several games after being bonked in the head by a wayward throw during warm-ups.

McKenna Somes rounded out the hit parade with a single against Sequim, while also being praised by CHS coach Greg Thomas for her work on defense in the twin-bill.

“She had a strong performance behind the plate,” he said.

Heidi Meyers, Tariana Hunter, Kylie Van Velkinburgh, Morgan Stevens, and Ivy Leedy also saw major playing time in the two games.

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To the final point, to the final buzzer!!

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on December 3, 2018| Leave a Comment »

Kylie Chernikoff had a team-high seven rebounds and three steals Monday, as the Coupeville JV went toe-to-toe with 2A Sequim. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

It’s all about the lessons.

Do you take them in? Do you build on them? Do they foster growth?

The Coupeville High School JV girls basketball squad is young (11 of 14 players are freshmen) and still finding its way.

So, while losses like the 35-20 defeat the Wolves absorbed Monday in Sequim hurt in the moment, they can be the start of something bigger as athletes adjust to the difference between high school ball and what came before.

“Attitude and effort are the only things in life you can control,” said Coupeville coach Amy King, and it’s a stark truth.

While the non-conference loss to a 2A school drops the Wolves to 0-2 on the season, they can look to how they responded in the second half as a positive to build on.

Coupeville could not get a shot to drop for much of the first half Monday, with buckets from Kylie Chernikoff and Anya Leavell the only small solace in a 19-4 deficit.

The Wolves struggled to break Sequim’s half-court man press, which made it hard to even get shots launched.

“We had turnover after turnover,” King said. “Passing the ball into the waiting hands of Sequim, who used that to fast break.”

Things took a turn for the positive after Coupeville coaches delivered a halftime pep talk/come to God moment.

“We challenged the team to get out of their own heads and start playing basketball,” King said. “The energy needed to elevate from everybody, talk on defense and get scrappy.”

And scrappy they got, as Leavell and Kiara Contreras led a defensive stand, going after the ball with ramped-up intensity instead of sitting back and letting the play come to them.

With Chernikoff, Ja’Kenya Hoskins and Abby Mulholland cleaning the boards with authority, CHS pushed the flow of the game, playing Sequim even in the second half (16-16), while winning the battle in the fourth quarter 10-4.

“We were stirring up some energy, started moving the ball better and getting open shots,” King said. “We moved the ball like we knew how, and we changed our press break enough to get a few longer passes down the court, which made their defense scramble a little bit.

“If we had played that way in the first half, the game may have turned out a little different.”

Izzy Wells paced the Wolves with eight points, all coming in the second half, while snagging six rebounds.

Leavell netted six, with Chernikoff, Mollie Bailey and Hoskins adding two points apiece to round out the Wolf scoring.

Coupeville’s leader on the glass was the always hard-charging Chernikoff, who ripped down seven rebounds to go with her team-high three steals.

Hoskins added six boards, with Contreras and Kylie Van Velkinburgh each doling out two assists.

All 11 CHS girls in uniform Monday played, with Alana Mihill, Lily Leedy and Morgan Stevens also seeing floor time.

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“We have fight, despite the score!!”

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on December 3, 2018| Leave a Comment »

Ema Smith tallied seven points Monday at Sequim, achieving a personal scoring milestone. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Some nights it’s better to look at the small moments instead of gazing too long at the big picture.

There was likely a fair amount of frustration Monday, as the Coupeville High School varsity girls basketball team got pounded on the boards, went scoreless for an entire quarter and fell by a considerable margin to host Sequim.

After absorbing a 50-24 defeat at the hands of their 2A foes, keyed by a 21-0 third quarter, the Wolves sit at 0-3 on the still-young season.

But, there were positives buried in the aftermath.

For one, Coupeville rallied in the fourth quarter, winning pride points by closing the game on a 9-4 surge.

And secondly, two Wolf seniors exited the gym having achieved at least a small triumph, as both made moves on the school’s all-time scoring list.

Lindsey Roberts, back after a college trip, led Coupeville with 10 points, which gives her 316 for her career.

She sits in 35th place in program history (1975-2018), and is just 16 points from sliding into the top 30 all-time.

Her running mate, Ema Smith, added seven Monday, cracking the 100-point barrier, becoming just the 97th Wolf female to achieve triple digits in 44 seasons of hardwood play.

So, some grace notes.

Other than that, it was a fairly rough night, as Coupeville struggled at the free-throw line, hitting just 5-20, was out-muscled on the glass and couldn’t slow their foe down.

Sequim built a 13-5 lead after one quarter, stretched the margin out to 15 points midway through the second, and settled for a 25-15 advantage at the half.

Then, disaster.

“Coming out for the third, we didn’t get it done defensively and they had three quick and easy open looks at the basket for scores,” said Coupeville coach David King. “From then on, it was an all-out blitz for Sequim.

“Defensively, we are struggling and just not playing well on that end.”

The Wolves dug deep in the fourth, something their coach wants to build on.

“Some pride took over; it shows we have fight despite the score,” King said. “We have to keep pushing forward and continue to fight like we did tonight.

“It’s going to be baby steps and it starts tomorrow at practice.”

Roberts snagged a team-high nine rebounds and made off with five steals to go with her 10 points, while Ema Smith had seven points and six boards.

Avalon Renninger (4), Tia Wurzrainer (2) and Chelsea Prescott (1) rounded out the scoring, while Hannah Davidson yanked down seven rebounds, Ja’Kenya Hoskins collected five and Scout Smith hauled in four.

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