Juniors Jada Heaton (second from left), Mia Farris (second from right), and Madison McMillan (far right) anchor a young but talented CHS softball squad. (Photo courtesy Jennifer Heaton)
They may be young, but they’re not going to wait around to win.
Starting two 8th graders and two freshmen Friday, the Coupeville High School softball squad opened the season with a bang, mashing host South Whidbey 20-9.
The Wolves led from start to finish, cranked out 13 hits and drew 10 walks, and got big contributions from all nine starters.
Top things off with a pinpoint pitching performance from fab frosh Haylee Armstrong — already a grizzled vet in her second season of high school ball — and it made for a fun trip down Island.
“We had our chances to panic but the team rallied and would not let that happen,” said Wolf coach Kevin McGranahan. “Great first game win!”
It was the 98th victory at CHS for the diamond guru, keeping him ahead of volleyball sage Cory Whitmore (88) and boys’ basketball head man Brad Sherman (70) as the winningest active coach at the school.
Meanwhile it was win #1 for middle school aces Sydney Van Dyke and Ava Lucero, as the former whacked two hits and picked up four RBI, and the latter walked three times.
“Sydney had two clutch singles driving in runs, and that’s huge for an 8th grader,” McGranahan said.
Armstrong, who played in the outfield for the Wolves during her own 8th grade season, moved to the pitcher’s circle Friday, where she was lights out for a good deal of the game.
Racking up 12 strikeouts, she kept the Falcon hitters on their heels, and already looks like an ace.
“Haylee pitched seven great innings,” McGranahan said. “It was her varsity debut as a freshman pitcher and she more than rose to the occasion.”
Armstrong helped herself, lacing a leadoff single in the top of the first to kick-start a three-run rally.
The “old folks” helped out, as well, with juniors Taylor Brotemarkle and Madison McMillan ripping singles and sophomore Teagan Calkins crunching an RBI groundout.
The Wolves continued to chip away, pushing runs across in each of the first five innings as they built a 13-3 lead.
Van Dyke delivered a key two-run single, Armstrong blasted a triple, and Coupeville mixed and matched hits with walks, while alertly running the bases.
South Whidbey proved to be chippy, however, getting back in the game with four runs of its own in the bottom of the fifth, and another two in the sixth.
The top of the sixth was the only frame in which Coupeville went down 1-2-3, briefly allowing the hosts to cut the deficit back to 13-9.
But never fear, as the Wolves bounced right back with seven runs in the seventh, before blanking South Whidbey in its final at-bats.
Van Dyke, making one of the great debuts in CHS softball history, laced a second two-run single, while Armstrong and Mia Farris smacked back-to-back run-scoring base-knocks to blow things wide open.
Coupeville, which has no seniors on its roster, spread the offensive love from the top of the order to the bottom.
Armstrong led the way with three hits, including her three-bagger, while McMillan, Van Dyke, and Calkins each collected a pair.
Farris, Brotemarkle, Jada Heaton, and Capri Anter also stroked singles, with Lucero and Heaton walking three times apiece.
Ever the busy bee, McMillan eked out a pair of free passes to go with her hits, while Farris and Calkins picked up the other walks.
Coupeville’s young sluggers come home next Tuesday, Mar. 19 for a showdown with Northwest 2B/1B League archrival Friday Harbor, then hit the road again for three straight rumbles.
The Wolves travel to Blaine, Orcas Island, and Concrete, before welcoming Onalaska to Cow Town Mar. 30 for a doubleheader.
Coupeville Sports 