A series sweep of Sultan last week helped lift the Coupeville baseball team to fourth place in the Cascade Conference standings.

The Wolves (4-5, 6-5) took two Friday, April 9, in a double header at Sultan (2-9), winning the opener 11-5 and the second game 8-6. Earlier in the week, the Wolves topped the Turks 15-5.

A defensive play in the second inning swung the momentum to Coupeville in the first game. Alex McClain ran down a fly ball in center field, threw to cutoff man Chad Brookhouse, who relayed to catcher Chase Griffin to nail the runner who tagged up at third and tried to score.

From that point it was all Coupeville. The Wolves scored four in third and tacked on runs in each remaining inning to coast to the win.

Coach Willie Smith was pleased with the effort of starting pitcher Brookhouse: “Chad really did a great job and I was pleased with his approach on the mound and his presence.”

The Wolves hit well throughout the lineup, racking up 15 hits and four doubles. Brookhouse was 3-for-4 with three RBI, Ian Smith 3-for-5, J.D. Wilcox 2-for-4 and Sean Thurman 2-for-4. Smith, Thurman, Erik King and Kevin Eaton slugged the doubles.

Coupeville also stole seven bases, three by Griffin and two by Smith.

The Wolves jumped to a 6-1 lead after two innings in the second game, but the Turks bounced back.

McClain pitched into the fourth, and coach Smith said, “He had good command and threw with a lot of confidence.”

McClain tired in the fourth, Smith said, and Sultan scored four runs to cut the lead to 6-5. Wilcox entered in relief to stop the rally; Smith said, “He threw harder than he has all season. He completely overpowered them.”

Wilcox also threw the final two innings in the opener.

Wilcox led the offense, as well. He finished 3-for-4 with a triple, three runs, three RBI and two stolen bases.

Eaton and McClain were 2-for-3 and King 2-for-4.

In the three-game series, the Wolves scored 35 runs on 47 hits (nine doubles and a triple).

Smith said, “Our pitchers were able to go deep into the games and Chad and Alex really stepped up in a big way by being able to shut them down and throw so well. Hopefully, we can use the momentum we’ve gained heading into this week against South Whidbey, which is always a big series for us.”

The Wolves host South Whidbey (3-6, 5-6) today, April 12, at 4 p.m. The teams meet again Wednesday in Langley and then return to Coupeville Friday.