By Matt Moss
Sports Editor
Coupevile’s 53-37 quarterfinal victory over Overlake on Thursday night puts the Wolves just two victories away from the Class 1A state championship, but it won’t be easy.
The Wolves faced Eastern Washington’s Colfax (22-4), ranked fourth in state, last night in a semifinal contest with the winner advancing to the state title game tonight against either No. 1 Brewster (24-1) or No. 2 King’s (24-1) (results will be published in next Wednesday’s edition of the Whidbey-News Times). With the victory against Overlake, the sixth-ranked Wolves can do no worse than sixth place in the tourney, which would by the best-ever showing by the school.
Leading the way for the Wolves against Overlake was junior Erica Lamb, who had a 15 points, with 11 coming in the second half. The 5-foot-5 guard went 5-of-9 from the field and 5-of-8 from the free throw line while adding four steals on the night.
Coupeville jumped out to a 10-2 first quarter lead, putting the Owls in a hole that they could never escape. Overlake was able to get as close as six later in the game, but the Wolves held on for the win.
Brianne King added 11 points, including two three-pointers, while Ashley Ellsworth-Bagby and Sarah Mouw contributed eight points apiece. Mouw also added nine rebounds.
Coupeville entered the quarterfinal matchup against Overlake knowing what to expect from the Owls, as they had picked up a 52-49 victory against them earlier in the season. Overlake made it to the game by upsetting third-ranked Zillah 63-58 in the first round.
The Wolves reached the quarterfinals by defeating the Onalaska Loggers 39-31 on Wednesday afternoon in a first-round contest. Despite being outrebounded 36-25 by the taller Lady Loggers, Coupeville used a swarming defense to limit Onalaska’s offense and pick up the win.
Lamb once again led the Wolves in scoring with 10 points, while King added nine. Ellsworth-Bagby contributed eight points and eight rebounds.
The Wolves’ defense was outstanding in the contest, as they held Onalaska to 9-of-37 shooting from the field, including just 2-of-17 in the first half. They also forced 31 turnovers which led to 30 of their 39 points in the game, while the Loggers scored just two points off of 19 Coupeville turnovers.
The Wolves sprinted out to a 22-13 halftime lead and were able to expand the advantage to 14 points late in the game before Onalaska came back at the end.
If Coupeville can get by Colfax in the semifinals they will have no easy task in the championship game. King’s defeated the Wolves 62-38 in the tri-district title game last Saturday while Brewster is gunning for its third consecutive Class A title.
Class A state tournament: first round
Coupeville 53, Overlake 37
At Yakima SunDome
Coupeville – 10 13 9 21 – 53
Overlake – 2 13 6 16 – 37
Coupeville: Guillory 2, A. Mouw 2, Ellsworth-Bagby 8, E. Lamb 15, King 11, Black 2, Taylor 2, Davis 3, S. Mouw 8. Overlake: Weaver 5, Fisk 2, Pentz 22, Al. MacKenzie 5, Marriott 2, Linn 1. Records: Coupeville 23-3, Overlake 19-6.
Class A state tournament: quarterfinals
Coupeville 39, Onalaska 31
At Yakima SunDome
Onalaska – 6 7 6 12 – 31
Coupeville – 10 12 8 9 – 39
Onalaska: Parsons 12, Kinsman 4, Bowers 15. Coupeville: A. Mouw 6, Ellsworth-Bagby 5, Lamb 10, King 9, Davis 2, S. Mouw 7. 3-point shooting: Onalaska 1-10, Coupeville 1-6. Records: Onalaska 18-6, Coupeville 22-3.
Class 1A Girls Basketball state tournament at Yakima SunDome
Wednesday, Feb. 27
Game 1 — Colfax 60, Forest Ridge 27
Game 2 — Liberty Bell 51, Ilwaco 49
Game 3 — Coupeville 39, Onalaska 31
Game 4 — Overlake 63, Zillah 58
Game 5 — Brewster 83, Rainier 39
Game 6 — Archbishop Murphy 56, Burbank 54
Game 7 — Toledo 73, Cascade Christian 65
Game 8 — King’s 55, Dayton 35
Thursday, Feb. 28
Game 9 — Ilwaco 52, Forest Ridge 26 (loser out)
Game 10 — Onalaska 34, Zillah 26 (loser out)
Game 11 — Burbank 53, Rainier 44 (loser out)
Game 12 — Dayton 55, Cascade Christian 42 (loser out)
Game 13 — Colfax 47, Liberty Bell 29
Game 14 — Coupeville 53, Overlake 37
Game 15 — Brewster 75, Archbishop Murphy 43
Game 16 — King’s 65, Toledo 44
Friday, March 1
Game 17 — Onalaska 37, Ilwaco 34 (loser out)
Game 18 — Burbank 55, Dayton 47 (loser out)
Game 19 — Liberty Bell 59 vs. Overlake 47 (loser out)
Game 20 — Toledo 85, Archbishop Murphy 65 (loser out)
Game 21 — Colfax (22-5) vs. Coupeville (23-3), late
Game 22 — Brewster (24-1) vs. King’s (24-1), late
Saturday, March 2
Game 23 — Onalaska (20-6) vs. Burbank (19-8), 10:30 a.m. (5th, 8th places)
Game 24 — Liberty Bell (17-9) vs. Toledo (24-2), 1:30 p.m. (4th, 7th places)
Game 25 — Colfax-Coupeville loser vs. Brewster-Kings loser, 5 p.m. (3rd, 6th places)
Game 26 — Colfax-Coupeville winner vs. Brewster-Kings winner 22, 9 p.m. (championship)
