Oak Harbor, Coupeville grads compete in college / Alumni update

Several Oak Harbor and Coupeville high school graduates are continuing their athletic careers by competing in collegiate winter sports. Here’s a look at their accomplishments during the 2018-19 season.

Basketball

For the second consecutive year, Coupeville’s Makana Stone received all-Northwest Conference, first-team honors while playing for the Whitman College (Walla Walla) women’s basketball team. She also took home Player of the Week honors three times this season.

The Blues went 20-7 this winter and finished second in the conference at 13-3 and second in the league tournament.

The junior led Whitman in scoring with a 14.9 average, tallying 388 points in 26 games. She also topped the Blues in rebounds (227), offensive rebounds (86), defensive rebounds (141), blocks (21), field goals (162) and free throws (63).

Stone scored a season-high 26 points at Montana Tech Nov. 17 and grabbed a season-high 17 rebounds at Whitworth Jan. 8.

Sophomore Kailey Kellner scored 76 points for the D’Youville College (New York) this winter.

The Coupeville graduate appeared in all 25 games for D’Youville, starting two.

She collected 44 rebounds, 17 assists and four steals for the 10-15 Spartans.

Kellner scored a season-high 10 points in a start and win against Medaille Feb. 11. She collected five rebounds against Clarkson Dec. 30 and dished four assists at La Roche Jan. 26, when she played a season-high 24 minutes.

Wrestling

Two Oak Harbor graduates wrestled for Central College (Pella, Iowa) this season — one finished up his career while the other got his started.

Senior Jeremy Vester, competing at 165 pounds, wrapped up his time at Central with 82-32 overall record, 23-7 this year.

This season he won the Pointer Open Nov. 3 and finished second at the Milwaukee School of Engineering (Dec. 1) and Central Under Armour (Jan. 5) tournaments.

During his career, he earned four varsity letters and won five tournaments for the Dutch. As a junior, he finished third in the NCAA Division III Lower Midwest Regional and qualified for the national tournament. He placed fifth at the regional this winter.

Vester was named to the All-Iowa Conference team last year, and twice earned Central’s Most Improved Performer award. This year’s honors have not yet been announced.

“He’s been a tremendous leader,” coach Eric Van Kley said after the regional tournament Feb. 24. “He’s an unbelievable teammate and leader that will leave a legacy at Central College. It’s been a pleasure and privilege to have him in the program.”

Freshman Sam Zook (285 pounds) posted a 12-5 record for the Dutch in his first year. He ended the season by winning the Central Last Chance Invitational for reserves Feb. 9. He also took first in the silver division of the Central Under Armour Invitational Jan. 5 and second in the silver division of the Augsburg-Adidas Invitational Nov. 17.

Central finished the year with a 13-3 record and ranked 12th in the national D-III poll.

Rifle

Oak Harbor’s Mara Rouse is a regular on the University of Texas at El Paso rifle team. The junior competed in every match for the Miners this year, who finished with a 1-14 record.

Rouse was second on the team with a 578 average in air rifle and third in smallbore at 566. Her aggregate average of 1,144 was third best at UTEP, one point out of second.

She posted her highest aggregate score of the season, 1,153, against Alaska-Fairbanks Nov. 15. Her best smallbore total of 577, a career high, came at Ohio State Nov. 10, and she twice shot 584 in air rifle: Oct. 14 at Air Force and Oct. 20 with Nevada.

Rouse helped UTEP post its best-ever mark in smallbore, 2,290, at the Patriot Rifle Conference championships Feb. 2.

She fired a 1,146 (569/577) at the NCAA qualifier Feb. 16.

Freshman Elena Flake completed her first year on the University of Nebraska rifle team this winter.

Flake competed in five matches for the 6-8 Cornhuskers, posting a 1,149 aggregate average.

Flake’s best effort came at the Gamecock Open Nov. 10 in Jacksonville, Ala., where she shot 1,159, including a season-best 577 in smallbore.

Her top air rifle mark of 591 came in the Great America Rifle Conference Championships Feb. 23 in Akron, best among the Cornhuskers that day.

Coupeville graduate Makana Stone takes the ball to the hoop for Whitman College. Stone earned first-team, all-conference honors for the second straight year for the Blues. (Photo courtesy of Whitman College Athletics)