Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Posts Tagged ‘Teagan Calkins’

Young Wolves scrappy and strong

Posted in Middle School, Volleyball, tagged , , , , on October 11, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Teagan Calkins played strongly Monday at Shoreline. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

“Today was by far the best we have played this season yet.”

While both Coupeville Middle School volleyball teams fell to powerhouse King’s on the road Monday, Wolf coach Cris Matochi came away quite pleased.

“Our team has improved substantially, and today we had a bunch of incredible plays,” he said. “We also have improved our skills, and the girls stepped in and fought really hard.

“Coach Katie (Kiel) and I are extremely proud of these girls, and I could’ve not asked for a better performance from them.”

Coupeville, which was wrapping up a three-game road trip to start the season, knew going in the task would be monumental.

Yet the Wolves never flinched while facing a private school juggernaut.

“King’s was a very well-trained and developed team, with tall and athletic players,” Matochi said.

“Before we stepped in to the court, I asked the girls to play like they are David against Goliath. They all followed that motto whole-heartedly!”

Matochi praised the entire roster of young spikers for their grit and determination, while casting a spotlight on a terrific trio.

“Teagan (Calkins), Brynn (Parker), and Tenley (Stuurmans) did an incredible job with setting, and every single player that came in to the game — whether for a specific role or to play around — was able to show improvement and tenacity.”

From here on out, the Wolves remain on Whidbey, with three-straight home matches, then a short trip down Island to face Langley in the season finale.

First up is Granite Falls, which comes to Coupeville this Wednesday, Oct. 13. Tipoff is 3:15 PM.

“We are extremely proud of these group of girls, and we are so excited to play the next matches and see what our future holds,” Matochi said.

“The biggest goal that Katie and I have is for the girls to have fun and play hard,” he added. “We accomplished those things so well today, and I’m so proud of them for fighting like David!”

Read Full Post »

“Both teams did an exceptional job”

Posted in Middle School, Volleyball, tagged , , , , on October 4, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Sixth-grader Tenley Stuurmans and her fellow CMS volleyball players are “evolving quickly.” (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

This time it was official.

Bouncing back after Langley failed to show for last week’s season opener, the Coupeville Middle School volleyball teams made it on the bus Monday and traveled to Lakewood.

While scores and stats were lost in the shuffle of a stats keeper leaving early, we do know the young Wolves put up a strong fight before falling to a school which funnels players to a 2A high school.

Coupeville’s B Team won a set during their match, eventually falling 2-1, while Team A was swept 2-0.

The effort put up, especially with ball in hand, was a big positive.

“Their serving was incredible and they all had high energy the whole game!,” said CMS coach Katie Kiel, while talking about Team B.

“Team A played extremely hard and hung in there the whole time!,” she added. “Team A had some beautiful serves as well, and a couple good kills.

“Both teams did an exceptional job for it being our first official match of the season.”

Monday’s matches were the first of three-straight on the road for the Wolves, with trips to Sultan Oct. 6 and to Shoreline to play King’s Oct. 11 next up.

Coupeville gets back in its own gym Oct. 13, when it hosts Granite Falls.

“Our middle school girls are evolving quickly and this game against Lakewood has given us many learning opportunities,” Kiel said.

“With another away game on Wednesday against Sultan, I hope the nerves are all shaken off and we refocus and do what we love most: play volleyball!”

Read Full Post »

No opponent? No problem!

Posted in Middle School, Volleyball, tagged , , , , on September 29, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Grace Roberts was a standout in her first middle school volleyball match. (Photos by JohnsPhotos.net)

Sometimes you improvise.

Langley never showed Wednesday, seemingly ending the afternoon early for Coupeville Middle School volleyball players bouncing off the gym walls in anticipation of their first match of the season.

“To those of you who left work early to come watch your daughters and granddaughters play, I’m sorry,” said CMS Athletic Director Willie Smith.

“I could pay you for the time you missed at work … but, nope, not doing that,” he said with a big grin, easing the mood in the room as he exited the gym.

But, even after finding out Coupeville’s next-door neighbors would be a no-show, there were still fans in the stands, and a ref waiting to conduct business.

So Wolf coaches Cris Matochi and Katie Kiel improvised, turning the day into a mix of a practice and a scrimmage — both a learning experience and a chance for many of the first-time players to work out jitters playing in front of people.

High school coaches Cory Whitmore and Ashley Menges were in the stands, scanning the talent, and while the photographer vanished pre-camera click, this writer stayed around.

The two-set scrimmage featured players from Level One and Level Two mixed together at a moment’s notice, in a bid to balance the competition.

Also, as play went on, both coaches got more involved in the action than in a normal match, often working on the court to teach valuable lessons and tweak player’s style of play.

Serving carried the day, with nine different Wolves winning points off their work at the line.

Jordaya Dowell had the hottest hand, rolling up 11 points on her serve, including eight straight points in the second set.

Also coming hot ‘n heavy with the approach shots were Teagan Calkins (6), Brynn Parker (5), Carly Burt (5), Grace Roberts (4), and Capri Anter (3).

Capri Anter impressed her coaches Wednesday, delivering her “best serves so far.”

Heidi Lysene (2), Haylee Armstrong (1), and Willow Leedy-Bonifas (1) rounded out the Wolves to score off their serves.

While sustaining rallies is a skill which a lot of the young Wolves are still learning, there were a couple of extended back-and-forth battles, and a lot of standout individual plays.

Sixth-grader Tenley Stuurmans — playing in front of proud big sis Lyla, a ferocious freshman currently terrorizing rival high school players with her wicked spikes — came out firing like a gunfighter headed to a high noon shootout.

If that gunfighter also took dance breaks during warmups.

Tenley Stuurmans popped a pretty drop shot for a winner, hit the floor while angling another ball over the net for a point, then teamed up with Calkins for the day’s best precision play.

On that one, Calkins went low to field a sharply-hit serve by Ava Carpenter, flicked the ball skyward, then bounced to her feet as Stuurmans lofted a precision set.

Completing the fairly-flawless one-two-three series, Calkins split the defense with a surgical strike of a kill, setting off a celebration by her teammates.

Seventh-grader Grace Roberts, playing in the same gym older sister Ally once ruled as a spike-happy volleyball basher, complemented her strong serves with two plays on which she hit winners while on the move.

Also coming up big with hits for points were Myra McDonald and Adeline Maynes.

Abbigail Bond, Rhylin Price, Inara Maund, Natalie Perera, Ava Ashby, Alexis Hewitt, and Isabella de Souza Oliveira round out the Wolf roster, and their coaches came away pleased with how their players handled things.

“Turned out to be a good day after all!,” Kiel said.

Read Full Post »

“I like the adrenaline rush”

Posted in Basketball, Softball, Volleyball, tagged , , , , on July 14, 2021| 1 Comment »

Teagan Calkins zooms to the front of the pack as a cross country runner. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Teagan Calkins is ahead of the pack.

The ever-active Coupeville student/athlete, who will be an eighth-grader this fall, has spent much of her time playing ahead of her age group.

At age 12, Calkins is the youngest member of the Whidbey Island All-Star juniors softball team, which just concluded a successful four-game run at the state tourney.

While in Vancouver, she played in the outfield and caught, while being the team’s second most-productive hitter at the plate.

The youngest girl on the Whidbey Island All-Star junior softball squad, Calkins played strongly at the state tournament. (Jackie Saia photos)

It’s just the latest highlight for Calkins, who has also played soccer, cross country, basketball, and volleyball, while participating in gymnastics and taekwondo.

It’s a busy sports lifestyle, but one she plans to keep going. When she hits high school in a year, Calkins hopes to play volleyball, basketball, and softball, while also staying with taekwondo.

While she enjoys all her sports, softball and volleyball currently top the list.

“Softball because I enjoy kinda being in charge of the field, because of the positions I play, which are center field and catcher,” Calkins said. “Volleyball because I like diving and receiving a lot. I like playing libero.”

Calkins flies home with a run.

Regardless of the sport, being active and involved are big for her, and she embraces the exciting aspect of each activity.

“I like the adrenaline rush and being focused on one thing,” Calkins said. “To leave everything else behind and just focus on the sport.”

Away from competition, she enjoys math class (“I’ve just always loved math, and I’m really good at it”), and has shown a keen eye as a photographer, emulating mom Jackie Saia.

Already a star, at age six.

On the field, or court, or trail, or mat, Calkins brings energy and fearlessness to everything she does.

“My strengths are having motivation to dive to get the ball in both softball and volleyball and having good stamina,” she said.

“I’d like to work on how to play every position if I’m needed in softball, and “crashing” to stop the ball at catcher,” Calkins added. “I’d also like to work on pitching … release point, and speed, and how to do different releases for different pitches.”

To get to where she is, and to get to where she wants to be, Calkins has benefited from strong coaching, something she highly appreciates.

“Coach Fred (Farris) has coached me in softball for five years and taught me pretty much everything I know,” she said.

“When I was put in higher level volleyball camp and being the only 7th grader on an all-8th grade team, I was coached by coach Cris (Matochi).

“He was very encouraging and positive.”

Read Full Post »

Bash queens beat the softball black ‘n blue

Posted in Little League, Softball, tagged , , , , on May 26, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Taylor Brotemarkle drove in five runs Wednesday, part of a 14-hit, 18-run explosion for the red-hot Hammerheads. (Jackie Saia photo)

Pull the whistle, cause the freight train is running folks over.

Slamming out 14 hits Wednesday night, the Central Whidbey Little League Juniors softball squad roared from behind to claim an 18-12 road win over arch-rival North Whidbey.

With the victory, the Hammerheads push their winning streak to seven games and counting, and carry a 7-2 record into an extended break.

Central Whidbey is off until June 6, when it hosts South Skagit for a doubleheader.

Wednesday night they jumped on North Whidbey early, fell behind, then unleashed the full might of their bats to reclaim control of the game.

“Girls gutted it out,” said CWLL coach Fred Farris. “(Pitcher) Savina (Wells) battled hard against their really good lineup.

“My hat’s off to her for finding the physical and mental fortitude to play seven games in seven days between softball and basketball.”

Five runs in the top of the first got things off to a festive start for Central Whidbey.

Mia Farris started the mini-explosion with a one-out walk, followed by a single off the bat of Wells, then the Hammerheads really started painting using every part of the field.

Madison McMillan bashed an RBI double to center, with Taylor Brotemarkle smacking an RBI single to right, and Chloe Marzocca scorching an RBI single to left.

North Whidbey scraped their way back, however, putting up two runs in the bottom half of the first, before tacking on five in the second to surge ahead 7-5.

The Hammerheads got one run back, but should have had more.

Teagan Calkins led off the top of the second with a triple, but never made it home as North Whidbey’s defense clamped down.

Things went a little better with the same situation in the third, with McMillan blasting a leadoff triple, then sauntering home to score on an RBI single from Katie Marti.

With North Whidbey pushing two runs across in the third, the Hammerheads came to bat in the top of the fourth trailing 9-6, but showing no panic.

Instead, Central Whidbey’s bash queens blistered the ball to the tune of nine runs in the frame, turning a thriller into a rout.

The Hammerheads mixed five hits and five walks (including Mayleen Weatherford being plunked) to create the extravaganza of runs, with nearly everyone in the lineup chipping in.

Candace Meek led off with a single, with Marti, Calkins, and Mia Farris all whomping two-baggers in support.

Up 15-9, Central cruised in from there for the win, with Wells holding North Whidbey down with precision pitching, while her defense played lights-out behind her.

The Hammerheads spread their offense around, with eight of 11 batters getting a base-knock, and nine of 11 scoring.

With seven of the 14 hits being of the extra-base variety, Central’s coaching staff came away suitably impressed with their ferocious lineup.

Marzocca and Calkins both had liners which were ripped out of a cannon, but it was McMillan who truly wowed the gathered crowd.

She lashed a double and two triples, walked twice, and came around to score all five times.

Better yet, her big blows put the absolute fear of God into rival pitchers in three states.

“Madison’s triples would have both been over our fence (at Rhododendron Park),” Fred Farris said. “The second one hit half way up their “gray monster,” which is 220 feet (away) and 12 feet high.”

When McMillan wasn’t penning her epic tale, her teammates ably helped her cause.

Wells (three singles), Calkins (2B, 3B), Marti (1B, 2B), Farris (2B), Meek (1B), Marzocca (1B), and Brotemarkle (1B) all put the ball where the defense wasn’t.

Meanwhile Jada Heaton walked twice and scored both times, Weatherford and Anna Steckman made solid contributions, and Brotemarkle was raking, picking up a team-high five RBI.

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »