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Big swings, tons o’ runs

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , on April 13, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Wolf slugger Madison McMillan abuses the softball. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Kevin McGranahan stayed busy on a milestone day.

Amid a flurry of lineup changes, his Coupeville High School varsity softball team bashed host La Conner 24-7 in a six-inning affair Thursday afternoon.

The victory, McGranahan’s 90th as CHS head coach, lifts the Wolves to 5-1 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 7-4 overall heading into a weekend non-conference doubleheader at Onalaska.

The rumble with the Braves came with its own hurdles, as La Conner is winless and while Coupeville wanted to win, it wanted to do so with class and a sense of fair play.

So that kept McGranahan hopping, as he got action for 16 players, including starting three girls who normally come off the bench.

“I mixed up the lineup and tried to get players at least two innings and a couple at-bats for everyone,” he said.

Mixing and matching players left and right, while trying to give scorekeeper Gordon McMillan carpal tunnel syndrome, the CHS softball guru kept things interesting.

Fifteen different Wolves, including three 8th graders, reached base, as Coupeville piled up 14 hits and 17 walks, though McGranahan’s squad limited their base-stealing and taking extra bases.

South Korean foreign exchange student Layla Heo made her first varsity start.

Coupeville jumped out to an 8-0 lead, gave some runs back in the middle innings thanks to some walks and one well-cracked double, then fired up the bats to put things out of reach.

Freshman catcher Teagan Calkins lit up dad Shawn’s Facebook Live stream right from the start, launching a long triple to deep center field to lead off the game.

She soon scampered home on a wild pitch, heading for the camera with a grin on her face, a star made for prime time, as the Wolves slapped six runs on the board in the top of the first inning.

Madison McMillan cracked an RBI double which went to the heavens, high-fived the sun, then dropped back to the field, while her teammates took advantage of La Conner errors to get the offense rolling.

But the Braves proved resilient, limiting Coupeville to just a single run apiece in both the second and third, before scraping together a rally to get within 8-5.

The Wolves pushed it back to 13-5, scoring twice off of wild pitches, once on a bases-loaded walk to Bailey Thule, and twice on a booming double from Calkins snazzy, still-fairly-new bat.

La Conner hung tough, cutting things to 13-7 by the end of the fourth, before McGranahan went back to his starters to emphatically close things out.

CHS pitcher Maya Lucero, who tossed two scoreless innings to open the game, came back around to fling two more lights-out frames, while twin sister Allie pasted a three-run double.

Mia Farris, Sofia Peters, and Gwen Gustafson all had big run-scoring hits in the latter stages of the game, with a nine-run sixth inning finally tipping things into mercy-rule land.

With the win, McGranahan gets to 90-42 as Wolf softball coach.

He’s in his seventh season at the head of the diamond program, though it would be his 8th campaign if the pandemic hadn’t completely erased the 2020 schedule.

 

Thursday stats:

Capri Anter — Two walks
Haylee Armstrong — One walk
Taylor Brotemarkle — Two walks
Teagan Calkins — One double, one triple, one walk
Mia Farris — Two singles, one double, one walk
Gwen Gustafson — Two singles
Jada Heaton — One double
Allie Lucero — One single, one double
Maya Lucero — One single, two walks
Chloe Marzocca — One single
Madison McMillan — One double, two walks
Melanie Navarro — Three walks
Sofia Peters — One double, one walk
Bailey Thule — One walk
Melanie Wolfe — One walk

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Undefeated? We can fix that!

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , on April 12, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Taylor Brotemarkle (left) and Chloe Marzocca both scored as Coupeville thumped previously undefeated Darrington. (Jackie Saia photo)

“We started pretty fast and kept our foot on the gas.”

Kevin McGranahan had his Coupeville High School varsity softball team primed for Tuesday’s showdown with undefeated Darrington, and it showed.

Pounding out 13 hits, with nine of those base knocks being for extra bases, the Wolves made quick work of the visiting Loggers, rolling to a 15-3 victory.

The win lifts CHS to 4-1 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 6-4 overall, while Darrington falls to 3-1 in conference action.

The home game, played on a day when the sun peeked out over the prairie, the rain stayed away, and the wind made but the smallest of rustles, kicks off a busy week for Coupeville.

The Wolves travel to La Conner Thursday to face a winless Braves squad, then head off to Onalaska Saturday for a doubleheader against a tough non-league foe.

Based on win/loss records, Tuesday’s tilt with Darrington might have been expected to be a tightly-contested affair.

It was not.

Wolf hurler Allie Lucero struck out the side in the top of the first, kicking off a day in which the senior would record nine K’s, and then the offense went to work.

Coupeville crunched four doubles in the bottom of the first en route to grabbing a 3-0 lead, with Mia Farris, Taylor Brotemarkle, Allie Lucero, and Maya Lucero all finding their groove.

The hits kept coming in the second frame, as 8th grader Haylee Armstrong led off with a triple, launching a gorgeous line drive to deep centerfield that brought to mind memories of former Wolf hitting star Chelsea Prescott.

The middle school masher, who worked her way into the starting lineup with her defense, is proving her bat is ready for prime time as well, something her coach noted.

“We had big hits all over today, but none bigger than the one from the smallest girl out there today,” McGranahan said with a big smile.

Two batters later Armstrong tapped home after freshman catcher Teagan Calkins bopped a double down the third-base line, and the rout was on.

Darrington briefly cut its deficit to 4-1 in the third, scoring on a botched play in which a Logger got caught in a two-out rundown, only to escape when the Wolves threw the ball away not once, but twice.

While that play might have given McGranahan and his assistant coaches a touch of angina, it was soon washed away by the glory of the Wolf bats.

Coupeville plated eight runners in its half of the third inning, before tacking on three more in the fourth to firmly put the game into mercy rule land.

Jada Heaton and Farris walloped doubles in the third, while Darrington fell apart in a wild mix of errors, walks, wild pitches, and mental meltdowns.

The defining play might have been Calkins, alertly scampering to first on a dropped third strike.

A smart move from a young gun who already plays like a grizzled veteran, it kept the Wolf rally at full tilt and never gave the Loggers a chance to recover from their mistakes.

 

Tuesday stats:

Haylee Armstrong — One single, one triple
Taylor Brotemarkle — One double, two walks
Teagan Calkins — Two doubles
Mia Farris — Two singles, one double
Gwen Gustafson — One single
Jada Heaton — One double
Allie Lucero — One double, one walk
Maya Lucero — One double, one walk
Madison McMillan — Two walks
Sofia Peters — One double

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Young, talented, and addicted to winning

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , on April 11, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville 8th grader Haylee Armstrong made big plays in both the varsity and JV high school softball games Tuesday. (Photo courtesy Michelle Armstrong)

“It was a beautiful day for softball.”

Playing the nightcap in a twin bill Tuesday, the Coupeville High School JV softball team made an impressive debut for coach Katrina McGranahan.

With three 8th graders in the lineup, and another two girls who had never played the sport before this year, the Wolves still knocked off visiting Darrington 8-5.

The game was a three-inning affair, with Coupeville closing out the game in the top of the third behind relief ace Haylee Armstrong, who ended things with a dramatic, bases-loaded strikeout.

Flinging nasty heat, the Wolf 8th grader, who earlier launched a line drive triple in Coupeville’s varsity win, heralded the bright future of CHS softball.

Armstrong and fellow 8th grader Capri Anter combined to stifle the Darrington hitters, while classmate Melanie Wolfe made it three middle schoolers dominating on the diamond before even attending classes on the high school side of campus.

While the Wolf varsity played its 10th game of the season, this was the first chance Coupeville had to play a JV foe.

“We were excited,” McGranahan said. “Many of the players on this team are young both in age and in softball experience, and they all did spectacular.”

Darrington struck for three runs in the top of the first, but Coupeville responded immediately, and with a cold fury.

The Wolves plated five runners in the bottom of the inning, and the only thing which kept the number that low was the five-runs-per-frame rule used in JV games.

All eight hitters to register an at-bat reached base, with freshman Teagan Calkins delivering the biggest blow.

Playing shortstop after working behind the plate in the varsity game, the fab frosh conked a two-run double, while sophomores Mia Farris, Chloe Marzocca, and Jada Heaton all ripped singles.

Armstrong, Anter, and newcomers Bailey Thule and Layla Heo collected walks, while Wolfe had her at-bat end prematurely when a wild pitch brought in Coupeville’s fifth run.

Darrington got two runs in the top of the second to briefly knot things back up at 5-5, but Farris and Heaton snuffed out any hopes of a Logger rally with alert catches on liners.

The Wolves scored what would prove to be the winning run in the bottom of the second, as Armstrong walked, stole second, and whipped around the basepaths to score on a beautifully crafted bunt single by Farris.

Just to make sure, Calkins provided a pair of insurance runs.

Turning around and hitting lefty to increase her danger, she smacked a two-run single into a gap, giving her four RBI’s in just two at-bats.

Darrington tried to make things interesting in the final inning, loading the bases thanks to a couple of walks and a rocket shot to third.

Anter almost pulled off an amazing snag on that wicked liner, which came in hot and ready to knock out some teeth.

The Wolves escaped unscathed, however, with Calkins, back behind the plate, grabbing a wild pitch as it bounced off the back stop and whirling to tag the incoming Logger runner, who instantly regretted her choices in life.

That set up Armstrong, striding around the pitcher’s circle, slapping the ball deep into her glove, then whipping the high, hard cheese past flailing hitters.

“I was really happy with Haylee’s pitching!” said McGranahan, who, once upon a time was Coupeville’s ace pitcher across four stellar seasons.

“I haven’t seen her pitch before and I was pleasantly surprised,” she added. “With a little more work she can be a great pitcher!”

McGranahan also praised the play of Thule and Heo, who are both new to the game.

“Layla is a foreign exchange student from South Korea and has never touched a softball before and she held her own in left field,” McGranahan said.

“She did what she was taught and stopped the balls going to her and got them into her cut person.

“I’m so proud of her and how far her softball skills and abilities have come.”

Thule, whose snapped photos have frequently appeared in the pages of Coupeville Sports this school year, is now front and center herself, and shows great growth.“Bailey played center field for us today and again is an individual who has never played the game of softball, but she got on base twice!” McGranahan said.

“She was able to work a walk for her first at bat which helps build her confidence at the plate, but the real confidence booster was when she hit a ball to right field!

“I don’t think I’ve heard our dugout cheer so loud before!”

 

Tuesday stats:

Capri Anter — One single, one walk
Haylee Armstrong — Two walks
Teagan Calkins — One single, one double
Mia Farris — Two singles
Jada Heaton — One single
Layla Heo — One walk
Chloe Marzocca — One single, one walk
Bailey Thule — One walk

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New week, new rumbles

Posted in standings, tagged , , , , on April 9, 2023| Leave a Comment »

CHS netters are ready to tango with their next-door neighbors. (Lucy Tenore photo)

Some at home, some on the road.

Weather willing, three of four Coupeville High School spring sports teams are scheduled to play this coming week.

Grabbing headliner status is Wolf softball, which hosts Darrington Tuesday, Apr. 11 in a battle between Northwest 2B/1B League heavyweights.

After that, CHS hits the road Apr. 13 and Apr. 15, with trips to La Conner and Onalaska, respectively.

The second, and longest, of those bus rides is for a non-conference doubleheader, as the Wolves want to get the most from their Eastern Washington trek.

Meanwhile, Wolf baseball joins its softball counterparts in hosting Darrington and traveling to La Conner, while Coupeville girls’ tennis plays a home-and-away setup with non-league rival South Whidbey.

The netters go to Langley Apr. 11, then host the Falcons Apr. 14.

Taking the week off — at least in terms of attending meets — is Wolf track and field, which will focus on practice and recovery from a busy schedule.

As we head into a new week of wondering whether Mother Nature will cooperate, a look at current league standings:

 

Northwest League baseball:

School League Overall
MV Christian 5-0 5-2
Coupeville 3-1 5-3
Friday Harbor 3-1 3-3
Orcas Island 3-3 6-3
Darrington 2-3 3-3
Concrete 0-2 0-2
La Conner 0-6 1-8

 

Northwest League girls tennis:

School League Overall
Coupeville 1-0 1-2
Friday Harbor 0-1 0-1

 

Northwest League softball:

School League Overall
Darrington 3-0 4-0
Friday Harbor 3-0 6-2
Coupeville 3-1 5-4
Orcas Island 2-3 2-7
Concrete 0-3 0-5
La Conner 0-4 0-9

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Brutal breeze, valiant victory

Posted in Softball, tagged , , , , , on April 8, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Maya (left) and Allie Lucero celebrated their 18th birthday Saturday with a win on the softball diamond. (Photo courtesy Jess Lucero)

The weather? Wicked.

The score? Divine.

Buffeted by goosebump-inducing prairie winds Saturday — but no rain — the Coupeville High School varsity softball squad cracked visiting Concrete.

Taking advantage of 20 walks, three well-placed hits, and several errors by the Lions, the Wolves strolled to a 20-0 win in a game called after three innings due to the mercy rule.

The victory, coming in a game which was originally supposed to be played in Concrete, lifts Coupeville to 3-1 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 5-4 overall.

Facing a rebuilding Lions team which is led by former Wolf JV coach Stephanie Henning, CHS did everything possible to not run up the score, while trying to get off the field and escape the brutal breeze.

All 14 Wolves who picked up a bat reached base in the rout, while 8th grader Haylee Armstrong chipped in with stellar defense.

Saturday’s game started as a road affair, then turned into a homestand for Coupeville, thanks to the weather forecast being (slightly) better for Whidbey than it was for Concrete.

While the hardy Wolf fans screamed in silent agony as the prairie lived up to its reputation of often making diamond teams feel like they’re playing in the middle of a cyclone, some were happy to see the game play out.

“I can’t feel my face!” (Jennifer Marzocca photo)

CHS aces Allie and Maya Lucero celebrated their 18th birthday during the win, while fellow senior Gwen Gustafson was flawless in the pitcher’s circle.

Facing the minimum nine batters across her three-inning stint, she whiffed seven Lions and recorded one of the two other outs on a comebacker.

“Gwen was on fire today, throwing BBs from the circle,” said Wolf coach Kevin McGranahan. “She was too much for the Concrete hitters.”

Coupeville put the game away quickly, tossing nine runs on the scoreboard in the bottom of the first, another eight in the second, then hitting the three-inning mercy rule when Mia Farris cranked an RBI single to score foreign exchange student Layla Heo.

That was one of three base knocks for the Wolves, with fellow sophomores Madison McMillan and Taylor Brotemarkle joining Farris on the hit parade.

Concrete, which is winless this season, is scrambling to improve, and having a former Coupeville coach in charge of the program is a big advantage.

“They are a very, very young team and inexperienced,” McGranahan said. “But I give them credit for fielding a team and never quitting, and having smiles on their faces.

“Glad to see Concrete back on the field, with a good head coach,” he added. “Stephanie will get them back on track.”

Coming off the win, the Wolves have a busy week ahead of them.

They host Darrington Tuesday, Apr. 11, then travel to La Conner Apr. 13 and Onalaska Apr. 15. That last trip will be for a doubleheader.

 

Saturday stats:

Capri Anter — One walk
Taylor Brotemarkle — One single, two walks
Teagan Calkins — Three walks
Mia Farris — One single, two walks
Gwen Gustafson — One walk
Jada Heaton — One walk
Layla Heo — One walk
Allie Lucero — Two walks
Maya Lucero — One walk
Chloe Marzocca — One walk
Madison McMillan — One single, two walks
Melanie Navarro — One walk
Sofia Peters — One walk
Bailey Thule — One walk

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