After Coupeville shocked South Whidbey, Sage Renninger and her teammates know what it feels like to knock off the biggest baddie on the block. (John Fisken photos)
Jacki Ginnings won a two-hour-plus contest at #1 singles to earn Player of the Match honors.
This one was as big as it gets.
South Whidbey is not only the gold standard for high school tennis on Whidbey Island, but the Falcons are perennially among the best in the state.
They are champions, as a team and as individuals. Year in and year out.
And Wednesday? The Falcons fell and they fell hard.
As the Coupeville bus headed back towards Cow Town, the noise could be heard from miles away, as the Wolves celebrated one of the biggest team wins in the ten-year run of CHS coach Ken Stange.
With both of his singles players coming up huge and an epic win at #3 doubles from a duo who don’t normally play together, Coupeville stung South Whidbey 3-2 to set off the celebration.
Once the Wolves reached the open road, that is.
“I won’t soon forget today’s match,” Stange said. “The girls have played hard all season long. Today seemed different, though.
“Each and every one of those young ladies brought fire and intensity to the court!,” he added. “From top to bottom, we represented our school with great effort and pride.
“Me, as the bus rolled to the end of the SW parking lot: Hang on. We need to respect them until we’re off their campus. Me, at the top of my lungs, once we were on the road: WE BEAT THE FALCONS!”
The non-conference victory, which avenged a 5-2 loss earlier this season, improved Coupeville to 2-3 on the season.
The Wolves take their flawless 1-0 Olympic League mark into competition Friday, when they host Chimacum.
Then, after a weekend tournament, Coupeville will host four matches next week, including a conference tilt against Klahowya.
Complete Wednesday results:
Varsity:
1st Singles — Jacki Ginnings beat Kendra Warwick 6-4, 7-5
A match-up between select soccer teammates (both play for the GU19 Whidbey Islanders), it went two-hours-plus and Ginnings netted Player of the Match honors for her win.
“Jacki was composed, and she balanced aggressive play with just the right amount of touch. Today, she used the tried and true tactic of drawing her opponent into the net before lobbing over her opponent’s head. It was brilliant!
“Sometimes a person just has to want something enough. Jacki had enough desire to power our entire team.”
2nd Singles — Valen Trujillo beat Macy Bishop 6-1, 6-1
“As the score suggests, Valen took control early and didn’t look back. Valen was en fuego!”
1st Doubles — Payton Aparicio/Sage Renninger lost to Isla Dubendorf/Bayley Gochanour 6-2, 6-2
“While the score suggests a blowout, Sage and Payton played quite well, jumping out to early leads in each set. The SW duo are a fairly seasoned pair, and our (freshman) girls will be on the winning end of these types of matches as time progresses.”
2nd Doubles: Sydney Autio/Micky LeVine lost to Iona Rohan/Jenn Leroy 6-3, 3-6, 6-2
“This match was a bit of a shootout. Sydney provided power and Micky provided consistency.”
3rd Doubles — McKenzie Bailey/Jazmine Franklin beat Carmen Warwick/Taylor Hamilton 6-2, 6-4
With Bailey’s normal partner (Wynter Thorne) out for the day, Franklin moved up and didn’t disappoint.
“This was one of the matches I knew we had to win, if we were to have a chance to pick up the team victory. We formed this doubles team on the bus as we were preparing to leave the school.
“Jazmine was consistent and is gaining power, and she made sure there was no weak link on her side of the net. And McKenzie? She was on point, crushing overheads and volleying with precision.”
JV (first rotation):
Ana Luvera/Ivy Luvera beat Jing/Clara 8-2
Bree Daigneault/McKenzie Meyer beat Roslyn/Anna 8-3
Haleigh Deasy/Hanna Seiffert beat Allie/Kelsey 8-1
Maggie Crimmins/Kameryn St. Onge beat Belle/Taylor 8-4
Ashley Smith/Daigneault lost to Margaret/Mei 8-3
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