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Posts Tagged ‘Spring Sports Preview’

Netters pursue big-time success!!

Posted in Girls Tennis, tagged , , , , on March 5, 2018| Leave a Comment »

   CHS seniors Sage Renninger (left) and Payton Aparicio return to seek a third-straight Olympic League doubles crown, and their first trip to state. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Come out swinging.

It’s what Ken Stange’s Coupeville High School tennis teams have always done, and nothing is different this spring.

Despite losing their top three singles players to graduation, and seeing one of their better young players hop over to track and field, the Wolves are fully intent on staying on top of the Olympic League.

Coupeville, which jumps to the new six-team North Sound Conference next year, has never lost a league tilt in three seasons in its current home, going 15-0 on its way to a trio of titles.

Powered by two-time league doubles champs Payton Aparicio and Sage Renninger, the Wolves are more than ready to defend their crown.

“One goal is to win the league title, and exit the Olympic League having gone four for four, in terms of league titles,” Stange said. “I think we have just enough firepower to do that.

“We are 16 strong,” he added. “It takes 11 for us to field a varsity squad, so we have to stay healthy this year, especially at the top of the line-up.”

And there is little doubt as to who sits atop the depth chart, as Aparicio and Renninger “have taken the reins and are leading the team with warm-ups and team-building.”

The duo missed a trip to the state tourney by a single slot as juniors, finishing second at districts in a year when only one team advanced.

This time around, District 3 netters get better odds, and Stange would love to see his senior leaders be rewarded with a trip to Eastern Washington.

“We’re hoping that the combination of hard work, last year’s graduation at Charles Wright, and two spots to state from districts will give Sage and Payton the chance to punch a well-deserved ticket to state,” he said. “If they make it, they will have a good chance at earning a medal.

“With all due respect to past doubles teams, Payton and Sage are easily the best female tandem I’ve ever had the opportunity to coach,” Stange added. “They’ve occupied the #1 doubles slot for their entire high school tennis career and each year, they pile up more wins than the last.

“It’s our last ride together, so to speak, and I’m honored to be a part of it. I’m excited for the opportunities they have created for themselves.”

While the star duo nab the headlines, Coupeville also returns seniors Maggie Crimmins, Kameryn St Onge, Claire Mietus and Heather Nastali, as well as sophomores Avalon Renninger, Tia Wurzrainer, Jillian Mayne and Zara Bradley.

Freshman Genna Wright, a First-Team All-Conference player in soccer, heads up the newcomers.

The early matches may be a bit of mix and match, as Stange juggles his lineup, looking for the best fit.

“We will be playing some untested people at the varsity level,” he said. “This happens most years, but we graduated all three of our singles players (in Valen Trujillo, Bree Daigneault and Fanny Deprelle).

“There will be a steep learning curve there.”

The strength of the team will be in doubles, and with four varsity slots compared to three in singles, CHS can win a lot of matches if their tandems click.

Beyond the regular season, which opens Monday, Mar. 12 at home against 2A Port Angeles, the Wolves want those duos to play on as long as possible.

“Another goal is to advance as many people to the district tourney as possible,” Stange said.

“With a likely three league tourney entries in both singles and doubles (top four advance to district), I’d like to see at least two, or maybe three, doubles teams advance to districts.”

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Wolves launch Mission: Cheney!!

Posted in Track, tagged , , , , on March 4, 2018| Leave a Comment »

   After two top-four finishes at state in the 200, Wolf senior Jacob Smith has his eyes on a state title. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Juniors Ashlie Shank (left) and Lindsey Roberts are back to tear up the track.

Depth, experience and talent.

The Coupeville High School track team boasts all of that, a strong coaching staff and improved facilities which now include new covered stands, announcing booth and dedicated track storage building.

All of that brings a huge smile to the face of longtime Wolf head coach Randy King, who is partially new himself, after successful hip replacement surgery.

The oval guru will call on returning assistant coaches Bob Martin (throwers, high jumpers), Chad Felgar (sprinters, hurdlers, long jumpers), Neil Rixe (distance runners), Jordan Ford (vaulters) and Lincoln Kelley (javelin) to help with his 40+ athlete roster.

Also joining the crew is Sylvia Hurlburt, a state meet veteran whose name appears several times on the CHS track record board.

The former Wolf star has come home to work with the sprinters and relay teams.

“Our team is really fortunate to have all this help and I really appreciate them,” King said.

Headlining the Coupeville roster are a host of athletes who made the long trek to Cheney last season.

Junior Lindsey Roberts, who has racked up four state meet medals in her first two seasons, leads the returning Wolves.

A school record holder in three events (100 hurdles plus both the 4 x 100 and 4 x 200 relays), she is chasing history.

Only three Wolf girls (Makana Stone with seven, Natasha Bamberger with six and Yashmeen Knox with five) have won more state meet medals than Roberts.

Her counterpart on the male side of the roster is senior Jacob Smith, whose school-record mark in the 200 has him ranked #1 among all returning 1A runners in the state.

After finishing fourth at state during his sophomore campaign, Smith claimed third last year.

As he chases a state title in the 200, the speed demon, who also went to state in the 100 and the 4 x 400, will add the 400 to his to-do list this season.

Maya Toomey-Stout, who became the first Wolf girl in school history to compete in four different events at one state meet (100, 200, 4 x 1, 4 x 2) is back for her sophomore season.

This time around, “The Gazelle” is joined by both of her brothers, senior Cameron and sophomore Sean.

Other state meet vets include junior Danny Conlisk (400, 800, 4 x 4), seniors Lauren Bayne (high jump), Henry Wynn (4 x 4) and Ariah Bepler (high jump) and sophomore Mallory Kortuem (4 x 1, 4 x 2).

Beyond the Wolves who competed at Cheney last year, the squad boasts considerable depth.

Some key returnees include seniors Mckenzie Meyer, Abby Parker and Allison Wenzel, juniors Emma Smith, Chris Battaglia, Ashlie Shank and Jakobi Baumann and sophomores Raven Vick and Lucy Sandahl.

Meyer set a school record in the pole vault last year.

Two promising newcomers are sophomores Zoe Trujillo, who hops over from tennis, and Chris Ruck, who transferred from La Salle.

As the Wolves make their final run through the Olympic League and District 3 — next year they jump to District 1 and the new North Sound Conference — King would like to see his charges make a solid exit.

“As far as team goals are concerned, we aren’t asking too much from our athletes this season,” he said with a smile and wink. “Just to run faster, jump better, and throw farther than they ever have before!

“Together with some work, and attention to technique, we can do this,” King added. “It is really going to be exciting to see what this group accomplishes this season.”

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Wolf booters gunnin’ for the top!!

Posted in Boys Soccer, tagged , , , , on March 2, 2018| Leave a Comment »

   Junior goaltender Brian Roberts is one of 11 returning letter winners for the CHS boys soccer squad. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

One last chance to take down the big dog.

As the Coupeville High School boys soccer team enters its fourth, and final, season in the 1A Olympic League, the Wolves will once again be on the chase to topple Klahowya.

The Eagles have been the dominant program in the conference, and boast a 21-0 mark in league play across the past three seasons.

Meanwhile, the Wolf booters have three consecutive third-place finishes, meaning they need to knock off Port Townsend as well as KSS.

“Klahowya has qualified for the state tournament the last few years and is always the team to beat in our league,” said Coupeville coach Kyle Nelson.

“Port Townsend has had our number the last couple of years, but we will be looking forward to our continued tight rivalry.”

The Wolves have a 15-game schedule, kicking off the season by helping debut their school’s new stadium Saturday, Mar. 10 against 2A Olympic.

Growth and development will go hand-in-hand with trying to notch wins.

“My goal is to form a well-organized, disciplined, exciting to watch squad,” Kyle Nelson said. “And with anyone who watches us play this year seeing improvement through the course of the season.

“I would like to finish with a winning record and a berth to the district playoffs.”

Coupeville’s biggest strength will be its veteran players, as the Wolves return 11 letter winners from last year’s squad.

Senior midfielders William Nelson, a three-time All-Conference pick, and Ethan Spark head up the team as captains.

Joining them are senior defenders Laurence Boado, Hunter Downes and Axel Partida, junior defenders Uriah Kastner and Teo Keilwitz and junior goaltenders Dewitt Cole and Brian Roberts.

Sophomore midfielders Aram Leyva and James Wood round out the key returnees.

“We are returning quite a few starting varsity players in most positions on the field,” Kyle Nelson said. “We also have a number of players who played with a select team in the off-season.

“So, we have experience on our side this year.”

Leyva and Spark are the top returning goal scorers, as each beat rival goalies six times a year ago.

William Nelson (4), Downes (2), Wood (2) and Boado (1) also found the back of the net in 2017.

Coupeville’s coaching staff, which includes first-year assistant Luke Pelant, a former All-Conference player for the Wolves before his graduation in 2013, is also hopeful of getting help from several newcomers.

“We will also be looking to incorporate some new players who look to be important to our team,” Kyle Nelson said. “But it can take a while for both the defense and the new players to fully integrate.”

Three who have a solid shot at seeing consistent playing time are foreign exchange student Pedro Gamarra, sophomore Derek Leyva and freshman Sam Wynn.

The first two can slide between playing at the forward and midfield slots, while the young gun is a defender.

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Wolf baseball wants to keep the magic alive!!

Posted in Baseball, tagged , , , , on February 28, 2017| Leave a Comment »

Senior Jonathan Thurston is one of several Wolf pitchers who will be counted on to help replace graduated staff ace CJ Smith. (John Fisken photos)

   Senior Jonathan Thurston is one of several Wolf pitchers who will be counted on to help replace graduated staff ace CJ Smith. (John Fisken photos)

Hunter Smith, a First-Team All-League pick last year as a sophomore, will anchor CHS on the mound and in the infield.

   Hunter Smith, a First-Team All-League pick last year as a sophomore, will anchor CHS on the mound and in the infield.

Last year they shocked the world. This year they have a bulls-eye on their chest.

Coming off its first league title in 25 years, the Coupeville High School baseball squad will look to keep the good times going in year two under coach Marc Aparicio.

“Our long term varsity goal this season is to win state,” Aparicio said. “Our JV goal is to support the varsity goal and to build a strong long-term future for our baseball program.

“Our short term goal is to win one game at a time.”

Coupeville returns almost every varsity player from a season ago, though two losses — CJ Smith and Olympic League MVP Cole Payne — are huge.

Smith was the team’s undisputed pitching ace, a serene strikeout artist who held his team together through good times and bad, while Payne was a rock behind the plate, a catcher who combined a potent bat with solid defensive skills.

On the mound, the Wolves won’t necessarily try to replace CJ Smith with just one hurler.

Younger brother Hunter Smith, himself an All-League pick as a pitcher, returns for his junior campaign, and he’ll have plenty of help as CHS “has about eight very good pitchers to try and replace CJ.”

Those include junior Julian Welling, senior Jonathan Thurston and sophomore Matt Hilborn, who was a First-Team All-League pick as an infielder in 2016.

“We are very fortunate this year to have a lot of kids that want to pitch,” Aparicio said.

Payne’s replacement will likely come in the form of Taylor Consford, a senior who transferred from Oak Harbor.

He was a starter for the 3A Wildcats last season, playing in 17 games and collecting five RBIs.

Other key returning players include catcher Jake Pease, infielders Kory Score, Dane Lucero, Joey Lippo and Nick Etzell and outfielders Clay Reilly, Gabe Wynn, Jake Hoagland and Ethan Marx.

The Wolves have also picked up a collection of new players, some of whom might start to contribute right away.

“Our freshman class is small, but all the players are looking very good so far,” Aparicio said. “A good fit to our already solid team.

“We will work hard this year to play as a team – play for the team and not as an individual.”

For Coupeville to repeat as league champs, it will need to scale Klahowya, which won in 2015, Chimacum and a Port Townsend squad that should be resurgent after an 0-16 year in which it never got to play at home thanks to field issues.

“Our league competitors will certainly put up a fight this year, as they did last year,” Aparicio said. “However, we’re confident we will go beyond league play.

“This is what we are practicing for.”

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Hang another banner!!

Posted in Girls Tennis, tagged , , , , , on March 7, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Jazmine Franklin (John Fisken photo)

   Senior Jazmine Franklin is one of seven returning letter winners for the Wolf net squad. (John Fisken photos)

Sophomores Sage Renninger (left) and Payton Aparicio reunite as a doubles duo.

  Sophomores Sage Renninger (left) and Payton Aparicio reunite as a doubles duo.

They are the queens of the court and they’re not ready to give up the throne just yet.

The Coupeville High School girls’ tennis squad enters a new season dead-set on defending its 1A Olympic League crown.

And they’d like to do it as convincingly as they won that first title banner a season ago.

“Win the league title again, going undefeated, is first and foremost,” said veteran CHS coach Ken Stange. “I also believe that we have a shot to advance players beyond the district tourney, to state.

“This is a real possibility, and it is a legitimate goal for our players.”

The grizzled tennis guru is in his 11th year at the helm of the Wolves, and coming off a season in which his netters went 11-3 overall, 6-0 in league play.

That included a stunning non-conference upset of the big dogs, South Whidbey, on their home court.

This time around, along with three league matches each against Klahowya and Chimacum/Port Townsend, Coupeville will again be tested by a tough non-conference schedule.

South Whidbey, Granite Falls and longtime rival Friday Harbor are back for home-and-home rumbles, while 2A schools Port Angeles and Sequim will fill slots vacated by Charles Wright Academy and Lakewood.

As they head into their 15-match schedule, the Wolves are talented, but thin.

With softball and track hauling in bigger than normal numbers this year, that may have affected the turnout for tennis.

“Depth will be an issue this season,” Stange said. “With barely enough players to field a full team, and our newcomers lacking in experience, we will have to learn as we go at third and fourth doubles.

“It should be fun, though!”

Seven letter winners return to anchor the Wolf attack and should account for the three singles and top two doubles units.

Juniors Valen Trujillo and Bree Daigneault and senior Sydney Autio are (lightly) penciled in as lone Wolves, while both doubles duos (seniors Jazmine Franklin/McKenzie Bailey and sophomores Payton Aparicio/Sage Renninger) played together last year.

“Our strengths lie with our returning players,” Stange said. “We have lots of varsity experience and they all had great seasons last year. I expect more of the same.”

“We often struggled at the top of the lineup last year, with our top doubles team constantly facing off against difficult foes,” he added. “This year, we turn the tables.”

Three returning players (sophomores Maggie Crimmins, Kameryn St Onge and Kenzi LaRue) and two newbies (junior Kaela Hollrigel and foreign exchange student Julia Borges) lead the players battling for the other varsity slots.

“It is going to be an interesting year,” Stange said. “With so few players, it’s going to be imperative on each team member to pull her weight.

“Sickness and other things that pull kids away from the court could result in losses,” he added. “I hope that is not the case.”

 

To see Coupeville’s tennis schedule, pop over to:

http://www.olympicleague.com/index.php?league=21&page_name=game_schedule&school=24&sport=18

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