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Posts Tagged ‘SWHS Falcons’

Wolf JV can kill you in one play

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , on January 19, 2019| 1 Comment »

Lily Leedy snagged six steals Friday, as Coupeville’s JV girls routed South Whidbey. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Three seconds.

High school basketball is a 32-minute game, but the Coupeville High School JV girls basketball team didn’t need the full time Friday to put its game on ice.

Scoring in three ticks of the clock, with Ja’Kenya Hoskins deflecting the opening tip to Anya Leavell, who hit Audrianna Shaw in stride for a wham-bam-game-over bucket, the Wolves made their intentions clear.

After that, it was nothin’ but good times, as Coupeville blew out to a 25-1 lead at the half before pulling back and settling for a 35-7 thrashing of visiting South Whidbey.

With the season sweep of their next door neighbors, the Wolf JV rises to 4-2 in North Sound Conference action, 7-6 overall.

Next up for the CHS second unit is a rematch Monday against Oak Harbor, another Whidbey team it also blew out the first time around.

The home non-conference tilt tips at 3 PM.

Facing a South Whidbey squad which is in rebuilding mode, Coupeville put the hammer down and did it quickly.

Using a press powered by Hoskins, Shaw, Leavell, Izzy Wells, and Mollie Bailey, CHS turned steal after steal into layups and short buckets.

The Wolves finished with an astonishing 34 steals on the night, with Leavell making off with nine.

Wells and Lily Leedy were coming up fast behind the fab frosh, picking Falcon ball-handlers six times apiece, while Hoskins made off with five.

“They covered the floor really well, working together to weave a web that South Whidbey couldn’t break through,” said CHS coach Amy King.

“Once we started substituting, and getting up a little more, we stayed aggressive but pulled back on the press.”

South Whidbey came dangerously close to being shut out in the first half, finally dropping a single free throw through the net in the final 30 seconds of the second quarter.

The Wolves slowed their roll a bit after the break, settling for a 10-6 advantage in the second half, but got big play from everyone on the bench.

“We started subbing and with each new rotation, came the same energy, the same teamwork,” King said.

Leedy was a firecracker, mixing steals with kick-outs to her open teammates for shots.

And she wasn’t the only one.

“Alana (Mihill) always plays such great defense and tonight was no different,” King said. “Morgan (Stevens) was strong on defense, stopping drives and rebounding with a “Nicole (Laxton)-like” fierceness.

“Kylie (Van Velkinburgh) helped where needed, as a post but helping with the ball,” she added. “Hurting with shin splints that just won’t go away, she had a hand up to discourage shots, directed teammates and took shots when open.”

Two late plays brought the Wolf faithful to their feet.

On the first, Abby Mulholland, working down low in the key, sucked the defense in, then found Stevens with a “brilliant pass” to set up a crowd-pleasing bucket.

As the clock ticked down on the game, Wells, who was a one-woman wrecking crew with 11 points, 14 rebounds, six steals, three assists and two blocks, ended things with emphasis.

South Whidbey had a perfect pass into the corner on the game’s final play, got the shot off and … WHAM!!!

Wells, “the quiet assassin,” rejected the ball and had “that perfect solid block to end the game.”

Shaw, who played “a very strong game” with “outstanding defense,” was also a terror on the offensive side of the ball, scoring a game-high 12 to go with the 11 by Wells, while Mulholland ruffled the nets for five points.

Bailey (3), Leavell (2), and Stevens (2) rounded out the offense, with Hoskins snatching six boards.

“Ja’Kenya always makes an impact on the court,” King said. “She ripped rebounds, made passes and adds an energy that lifts her teammates up.

“As a coach, I can say I was very proud of every one of them,” she added. “They put together their most complete game all season.”

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Missed it … by that much

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , , on January 19, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Sage Downes tossed in a team-high 11 Friday for the Coupeville JV boys basketball squad. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Toss out the first quarter, and it was a one-point thriller.

Unfortunately for the Coupeville High School JV boys basketball squad, the refs insisted on counting every point Friday night.

And that one brief hiccup, when they were outscored 14-9 over the game’s first eight minutes, sent the Wolves to a 40-34 loss to visiting South Whidbey.

The defeat drops the CHS young guns to 2-4 in North Sound Conference play, 6-7 overall.

The first time the Island rivals have faced this season (they play in Langley Jan. 29), Friday’s rumble was edge of your seat all the way.

The Falcons used a 6-5 “run” in the second quarter to take a 20-14 lead in at the half, then the two squads played even after the break.

Coupeville got a fair amount of its points thanks to shots from behind the three-point arc, raining down seven treys to four from the Falcons.

But those four were killers, as South Whidbey’s Ben Lind hit a pair in the opening frame, and two more in the final quarter en route to a game-high 13 points.

Answering for the Wolves was sophomore Sage Downes, who tickled the nets for 11 points, including a trio of three-balls.

Much of his support came from freshman Xavier Murdy, who netted all nine of his points thanks to nothin’ but three-balls, while Daniel Olson hit Coupeville’s final trey and had seven points.

Grady Rickner knocked down three points, with Cody Roberts and TJ Rickner adding a bucket apiece to round out the scoring attack.

Tucker Hall and Logan Martin also saw floor time for the Wolves.

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Playoffs, we’re coming your way

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , , on January 19, 2019| Leave a Comment »

The future is bright for Coupeville’s varsity girls, who clinched a playoff spot Friday by thumping South Whidbey. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

“Just very proud of the effort on a very emotional night.”

Coupeville High School varsity girls basketball coach David King walked off the floor Friday night having seen his team win its third-straight game, sweep the season series with their Island rivals, move into a tie for 2nd place in the North Sound Conference and clinch a playoff berth.

Having pounded visiting South Whidbey 37-16, the Wolves rise to 5-2 in league play, 7-7 overall, with three to play.

CHS is tied with Cedar Park Christian (5-2), two games off of King’s (7-0) and has a week before they get a rematch with CPC.

But like his players, King savored the win while also realizing the night was about far more than just a hoops game.

Friday’s tilt was Coupeville’s Coaches vs. Cancer game, and the school raised $483.20 for Project Violet at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

Before tip-off, the Wolf girls paid tribute to Ronald Smith, the grandfather of JV player Kiara Contreras, who lost his fight with Mesothelioma in Dec. at age 77.

They also brought former CHS player Brisa Herrera to the court, welcoming home a young woman who is cancer-free after a four-month battle with ovarian cancer shortly before her 2018 graduation.

Her high school coach, Amy King, hugged her, and a wave of emotion rose from the packed stands, swelling longest, loudest and proudest from the student section, which was full of many who attended classes with Brisa.

As each Wolf starter was introduced before the game, they, and several of the Falcons, stopped to bump fists with Herrera.

And then Coupeville, whole again with the return of injured starters Lindsey Roberts and Hannah Davidson, went to work.

A long shot off the fingertips of Chelsea Prescott knotted the game at 2-2, and then Avalon Renninger stroked a pull-up jumper and the Wolves never looked back.

While they let the Falcons stay close for a quarter, taking just a 7-4 lead into the second quarter after Davidson capped things by rolling hard to the hoop for a bucket off a Prescott pass, that quickly changed.

Death came from above, as three separate Wolves successfully launched three-balls to cap a game-busting 13-0 run midway through the second frame.

Roberts hit from the top left, Scout Smith nailed hers from the top right, then Ema Smith casually flicked her trey in while on the move at the top of the arc.

As shot after shot went high into the heavens and then splashed down, the delight of the Wolf fans grew, and the slump in the shoulders of the Falcons grew.

Shutting down South Whidbey’s top post player, Lexi Starets-Foote, Coupeville denied South Whidbey much of anything.

“Our posts, Hannah and Nicole (Laxton), brought their A-game,” King said. “They battled all game long.

“I (also) liked our effort in the press once we started to cover the middle.”

Up 20-6 at the break, the Wolves stretched the lead out to the 19-22 point range in the second half, and spread their offensive attack out, with nine of 12 CHS players scoring on the night.

Roberts, who suffered a nasty finger break/fracture at Sultan, had fingers on her left hand taped together for her return, but was electric as usual and didn’t seem overly bothered by the injury.

Her track speed is still at 100% and she used it for one superb breakaway, pulling in an outlet pass from Scout Smith and beating the pack for a loping layup.

“It was great having both Hannah and Lindsey back,” King said. “It solidifies our rotation and gives us a bigger presence in the middle.”

Ema Smith, who has stepped up big-time over the past week-and-a-half, knocked down three treys on her way to a game-high 11 points.

While Roberts, who tossed in six points Friday, gets justifiable props for being #23 on the CHS girls career scoring list, the Emanator has quietly risen to #56 all-time.

After tallying 94 points as a junior, Smith is at 95 and counting for her senior campaign. With 189 career points, she’s just 27 shy of breaking into the career Top 50.

Scout Smith, who had a team-high six rebounds and five steals, banked home five points in support of her veteran teammates.

Prescott (4), Davidson (4), Tia Wurzrainer (2), Anya Leavell (2), Renninger (2) and Laxton (1) also scored, while Ja’Kenya Hoskins snatched four rebounds, Izzy Wells snared two boards, and Mollie Bailey ran the offense in the late going.

While the final stretch of the regular season won’t be easy, with games against Cedar Park, King’s and Granite Falls, Coupeville is guaranteed to advance to the double-elimination district tourney regardless of how that stretch plays out.

The Wolves, who sit three games up on Sultan (2-5) and Granite Falls (2-5) and five up on South Whidbey (0-7), can finish no lower than fourth in the six-team league.

CHS swept the season series from Sultan, won the first meeting with Granite and needs just one win, or one Granite loss, to guarantee a top-three finish.

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“I’m really proud of our effort”

Posted in Boys Basketball, tagged , , , , , , on January 18, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Jered Brown and Co. fought hard Friday as Coupeville squared off with South Whidbey. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

The rivalry is reborn.

Playing for the memory of a fallen, but not forgotten teammate Friday, the Coupeville High School varsity boys basketball squad put together its best performance of the season.

And while the still-young Wolves couldn’t get past South Whidbey and its rampaging scoring machine, senior gunner Kody Newman, the performance speaks well for the future.

Newman torched the nets for 33, including nine in the final minutes, as the Falcons pulled away late, turning a nine-point fourth-quarter lead into a 64-43 win.

But while the seventh and final star of South Whidbey’s #1 sports family graduates this year, Coupeville can return all of its stars next season.

Leading the way will be Hawthorne Wolfe, a freshman whiz kid who leads CHS in scoring and tossed in 17 more Friday while playing for the memory of his childhood friend.

Coupeville’s Class of 2022, and friends, family and fans came out strong in support of Bennett Boyles.

As part of Coaches vs. Cancer, the Wolves left a seat on their bench open Friday in memory of Boyles, who lost a battle with brain cancer when he was just 12.

Wolfe, who played with Boyles on SWISH basketball teams, wears his friends name on his shoes and put together his most-complete performance of his short high school career in tribute.

CHS raised $483.20 during Friday night’s doubleheader, with the proceeds being donated to Project Violet at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

After hugging Bennett’s mom Lucienne before the opening tip, Wolfe tapped his hand on his shoes as he stepped on the court, then lowered his head and whispered something to himself.

And then he came alive, bouncing and slapping his thigh, before rattling home the first of his three shots from behind the three-point arc, followed by a headlong charge into the South Whidbey defense for another bucket.

Flying down the court, Wolfe pulled in a pass from Jered Brown, switched hands in mid-stride, spun a scrambling defender in a circle, and flipped the ball high off the glass.

As the ball slipped through the twines, pulling Coupeville within 7-5, the biggest crowd of the season roared, with Wolfe and Boyle’s fellow frosh making the loudest noise.

But while the future of CHS basketball was playing at the top of his game, the visiting Falcons had a much-more seasoned pro to answer right back.

With Lewis Pope having graduated, Newman is The Man in Langley, and he hit from every angle, knocking down one three-ball from about a step over the half-court line.

The true killer came on the final play of the first quarter, with South Whidbey clinging to just a 12-10 lead and Coupeville pushing their rivals far harder than some might have expected.

Newman, snatching up a madly-skipping ball, hit turbo speed as he slashed down the sideline, storming right past the CHS student section.

With a small nod, and a bit of a grin, he beat the clock, and the scrambling Wolf defenders, slapping home a layup and picking up a three-point play the hard way, tossing in a free throw to cap a game-changing play.

For a moment, Newman’s derring do seemed to turn the entire flow of the game, and South Whidbey quickly stretched its 15-10 lead after one quarter out to 21-10.

But the Wolves didn’t break this time around.

Wolfe twirled through a maze of bodies for a lil’ dipsy-do bucket, then lobbed home a three-ball, before Gavin Knoblich decided to get into the scoring biz.

Dropping his own trey, and then tapping home a layup off of a sweet entry pass from Sean Toomey-Stout, Knoblich’s 5-0 run pulled the Wolves back to within seven.

Enter Newman again, as he stuck another dagger into his rivals.

This time it was a pass, flicked behind his back to a teammate running to his side, which turned into a gut punch of a Falcon bucket.

While South Whidbey carried a 32-20 lead into the half, the Falcons could never quite pull away until late in the game.

Coupeville banged home a trio of three-balls and got some nice work in the paint from Ulrik Wells and Jacobi Pilgrim and played their rivals to a 17-17 standstill in a third quarter brimming with intensity.

Brown singed the net for a trey of his own to open the fourth, and back within nine, the Wolves looked like a team that might make a run at pulling off an upset.

But Newman has honed the skills of a killer in his four years on the floor for the Falcons, and all the years before that playing against his much-heralded older sisters and brother.

In the crucible of the fourth, the Falcons leader was too much for the Wolves, and he went off for nine points in a closing 15-3 South Whidbey surge.

Record-wise, the two teams are headed in opposite directions.

With the win, South Whidbey is 4-2 in North Sound Conference action, 11-5 overall, and sits in second-place in the six-team league, trailing just King’s (7-0, 13-4).

Meanwhile, Coupeville is 1-5 in league, 2-11 overall, and is battling to hold on to the conference’s fifth, and final, playoff berth.

If the Wolves can replicate how they played Friday, however, anything is possible.

For CHS coach Brad Sherman, the Island rivalry match-up was simply a game well-played, by both teams, and for the right reasons.

“We talked before the game about keeping on theme, playing for Bennett and realizing there is a lot more to life than just basketball,” he said. “We’re honoring someone who went through the fight of his life, and we wanted to play for him.

“I’m really proud of our effort,” Sherman added. “We were scrappier than we have been at any point this season, and we rebounded better than we have all season.

“South Whidbey played well. It was just a good basketball game between two teams out there fighting hard on every play.”

That scrappiness was showcased by Wolfe, who along with his big offensive plays, was a demon on defense.

Four different times a kid listed at 5-foot-7 on the roster forced jumps balls with South Whidbey’s 6’6 big man, including one tussle where he held on to the ball even while being swung two foot into the air.

Wolfe’s 17 points gives him 125 on the season, making him the second highest-scoring freshman boy in 102 years of CHS basketball.

He passes Arik Garthwaite (109), Taylor Ebersole (114), and Mike Criscuola (115), and trails just Mike Bagby (137).

Toomey-Stout rattled the rim for nine points in support of Wolfe, and a fourth-quarter free throw broke a tie between him and older brother Cameron, who graduated last year.

Sean now holds the family scoring title at 81-80, though there’s always the chance sister Maya will return to basketball and come gunnin’ for them both.

Coupeville’s lone senior, Dane Lucero, played aggressively on defense, while Knoblich (5), Wells (4), Brown (3), Mason Grove (3) and Pilgrim (2) also scored.

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Beautifully brutal beat-down!!

Posted in Girls Basketball, tagged , , , , , on December 13, 2018| Leave a Comment »

Freshman Audrianna Shaw filled up the stat sheet in her high school debut Wednesday, sparking Coupeville’s JV to a rout of South Whidbey. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

“We were ready to go!”

And how.

Even missing offensive ace Anya Leavell, who was felled by illness, the Coupeville High School JV girls basketball team was unstoppable Wednesday night.

Ripping off the game’s first 16 points, the Wolves savaged host South Whidbey, crushing their arch-rivals 36-11 in a magnificent romp.

The win, coming in the North Sound Conference opener for both teams, lifts CHS to 1-0 in league play, 2-3 overall.

The Wolves have won back-to-back games, and continue to add players back to their roster, easing the loss of Leavell and defensive dynamo Kylie Chernikoff (leg injury).

Freshmen Audrianna Shaw and Ella Colwell made their high school debuts Wednesday, and immediately jumped in to help their teammates on both sides of the ball.

Shaw, in particular, got off to to a roaring start, filling up the stat sheet with eight points, three rebounds, two steals and a team-high four assists.

Coupeville was brutally efficient on defense, throttling South Whidbey to the tune of 11-0 in the first quarter, before stretching the lead out to 24-7 by the halftime break.

“Our defense in the first quarter was stifling,” said proud CHS coach Amy King. “Audrianna and Kiara (Contreras) led the attack up top on defense while Mollie (Bailey), Izzy (Wells) and Ja’Kenya (Hoskins) didn’t let anybody from South Whidbey near the basket.”

Coupeville ramped up the intensity, dropping a press into the defensive mix a few minutes into the game, and the flustered Falcons wilted under the pressure.

King was able to give quality floor time to all 10 girls in uniform, and everyone contributed.

“As substitutes came in to the game, they stepped in without much change in the effectiveness of our defense,” King said. “From Kylie (Van Velkinburgh) and Morgan (Stevens) cutting off wing and post shots to Ella and Abby (Mulholland’s) wingspans in not allowing shots around the key and Alana (Mihill) working hard up top to force the ball away from the key.

“It was exciting to see the girls fight regardless of the score,” she added.

The Wolves snatched 33 rebounds and made off with 19 steals, both stats which pop off the sheet for Coupeville’s coaching staff.

“It just shows the effort these girls put into the game and winning it as a team,” King said.

Wells paced Coupeville with nine points, seven rebounds and three steals, while Shaw knocked down eight points, Hoskins and Mulholland each went for six and Van Velkinburgh notched four.

Bailey (2) and Contreras (1) rounded out the offensive show, with Contreras also driving South Whidbey’s ball-handlers bonkers while pilfering eight steals.

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