Losing a 6-2 heartbreaker Thursday night to cross-island rival South Whidbey High School wasn’t the way Coupeville head coach Ron Bagby wanted to take the Wolf Pack football team into the upcoming District playoff game against Meridian.

However, Bagby said he was happy to be in a game against Class 1A competition and thought the Wolves had a chance to win the opening playoff game despite finishing the regular season 0-9.

“We’ve looked at some films and Meridian is not a real big team, but they do have some speed and athletic ability,” he said. “We’ll just have to see what happens against them.”

Coupeville, the number two Class 1A seed from the Cascade Conference, travels to Meridian Thursday, Nov. 6. Kickoff against the Trojans is set for 7 p.m.

Against South Whidbey, the game turned into a battle of defenses with both teams trading punts and field positions while the Falcon and Wolf defensive units slugged it out.

Neither team was able to score during the first half and 6:34 had elapsed in the third period before the first points were put on the board.

Starting at the Wolves’ 33-yard line after a short punt, the Falcons began their scoring drive that was set back at one point by a holding penalty.

Facing a second and 24 situation at the Coupeville 43-yard line, quarterback Luke Hodson connected with wide receiver Mick Poynter who had slipped behind the Wolf Pack secondary. The result was a 41-yard completion that gave the Falcons a first and goal at Coupeville’s 2-yard line.

On the first play, Hodson punched the ball in the end zone for the only touchdown of the game. The extra point pass failed and South Whidbey led 6-0.

With 10:08 remaining in the fourth quarter and South Whidbey in punt formation at their own 12-yard line, the snap from center sailed over punter Nick Tenuta’s head.

Hodson managed to recover the the ball in the end zone before being buried by a host of Wolf Pack tacklers for a safety.

Following the ensuing free kick, Coupeville took possession at its own 44-yard line but was unable to get anything going on offense and ended up punting the ball back to the Falcons.

“We played a great game on defense, we just couldn’t do anything offensively,” Bagby said.

South Whidbey also played tough defense, holding the Wolves to just 25 yards in rushing on 26 attempts.

Leading ball carrier Justin Adams, who averages 100-plus yards a game, gained only 13 yards on 16 carries.

Quarterback Jason Bagby was 9-for-25 passing for 53 yards, and senior tight end Curtis Habeck had three catches for 26 yards.