South Whidbey uses big 1st inning to top Wolves | Softball

The Coupeville High School softball team dug itself into a deep hole and couldn't recover in an 11-3 nonleague loss at South Whidbey Friday, May 15.

The Coupeville High School softball team dug itself into a deep hole and couldn’t recover in an 11-3 nonleague loss at South Whidbey Friday, May 15.

The Falcons (7-13) mixed three errors with three hits to jump to a 6-0 first-inning lead and never trailed.

The Wolves scored two runs in the second inning and another in the third to trim the gap to 7-4, but South Whidbey tacked on runs in the fourth, fifth and sixth inning to pull away.

Hailey Hammer started Coupeville’s two-run second inning with a walk. Hope Lodell followed by reaching on an error, and Jae LeVine walked. A single by Monica Vidoni and an error off the bat of Lauren Rose produced the runs.

The Wolves began the third inning with a single by Katrina McGranahan, a double by McKayla Bailey and a single by Hammer to score their other run.

Coupeville left 12 men on base, including the bases loaded in the third and seventh innings.

McGranahan led the offense with two hits, one a double. Bailey also doubled. Hammer was 2-for-3, and Rose went 2-for-4.

Lodell, Vidoni and Robin Cedillo added singles.

Tiffany Briscoe and Lodell also aided the offense with sacrifices, according to coach Deanna Rafferty.

Second baseman LeVine led the defense, Rafferty said, with “a great double play by catching a pop fly and throwing to first to catch a runner.”

Rafferty said the game was “riddled with errors and a couple sloppy plays.”

“Although we hit really well,” Rafferty said, “our defense was where we let South Whidbey beat us.

“I am incredibly proud of our hitting, though, and hope we can carry it through to our game Monday against Meridian.”

Coupeville (6-11) plays a nonleague game at 4:30 p.m. Monday, May 18, at Meridian (3-15) and then closes out the regular season at 4 p.m. Tuesday, May 19, at home with La Conner (13-6) in another nonleague game.