Clinching its first conference championship in 13 years, the Coupeville High School girls basketball team clubbed visiting Klahowya 51-32 Friday, Jan. 30.
The Wolves, after struggling as the smallest school in the Cascade Conference, switched to the Olympic League this school year and produced positive results against schools its own size.
While racing to its first league title since 2002, Coupeville has won all six of its Olympic League games by an average of 23 points. The closest contest was a 17-point win over second-place Klahowya in the teams’ first meeting Dec. 12.
Three conference games remain, one against each of the three other Olympic League 1A teams, before the district tournament.
The Wolves (6-0, 12-5) host Port Townsend (2-4, 2-14) at 5:15 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 3.
Coupeville will enter the district tournament as the Olympic League’s top seed and meet the winner of the third-place Olympic League team (currently Port Townsend) and the second-place Nisqually League team (currently Seattle Christian, which is 13-4).
The game will be played at Sumner High School at 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 16.
In Coupeville’s win over Klahowya Friday, the Wolves, for the third time in the past four games, buried their opponent in the first period.
With Madeline Strasburg getting five points and Hailey Hammer four, Coupeville scored the game’s first 13 points.
By the end of the period, Strasburg added five more points and the Wolves led 20-3.
The red-hot Wolves connected on seven of their first eight shots.
The second and third quarters were dominated by Makana Stone. Stone scored all 23 of her points for the game and all but two of Coupeville’s points in the periods as the Wolves went up 33-15 at halftime and 45-21 after three quarters.
She went on personal runs of 6-0 and 8-0 during the middle periods.
Stone’s evening was highlighted by a hustle play in the third quarter. The junior snared a defensive rebound, fired a one-handed outlet pass to half court to get the fast break going and then rebounded the resulting missed contested lay-in and put it back in for two points.
In addition to her 23 points, she raked in 13 rebounds and three steals and dished four assists.
Hammer finished the night with six points, seven rebounds and three assists.
Strasburg collected 11 points, Kacie Kiel four, Kailey Kellner three (from a shot beyond the arc), Julia Myers two and Mia Littlejohn two.
Monica Vidoni grabbed six rebounds, and Wynter Thorne had two steals.
Izzy Severns scored 17 points for Klahowya.