After winning 12-7 at Sultan Monday, March 26, the Coupeville High School fastpitch team will now challenge Granite Falls for first place in the Cascade Conference.

The two teams meet at 4 p.m. Tuesday, March 27, in Coupeville.

The Wolves are 3-1 in league play, 4-2 overall, while the Tigers are 2-0 after a series of rainouts. Cedarcrest and Lakewood are each 2-1 in the tightly-bunched conference standings.

Against Sultan, Coupeville jumped to a 7-1 lead before a four-run fifth got the Turks (0-3) back in the game. The Wolves bounced back with their own four-run inning in the sixth to regain command.

Coupeville set the tone for the game when Madi Roberts and Ali Trumbull started the first with base hits and then scored on Hailey Hammer’s double.

After a run in the second, Coupeville added three more in the third. Trumbull doubled, Hammer walked and Bree Messner singled in a run. After Hammer scored on a passed ball, Sydney Aparicio singled in Messner.

The Wolves used four hits and two walks to fuel the four-run sixth, and then a double play to squelch a Sultan rally in the bottom half of the inning. Taya Boonstra snared a fly in right field and doubled-off the runner at second base.

McKayla Bailey earned the pitching win with the help of two innings of relief from Trumbull.

The Wolves finished with 13 hits, three from Aparicio. Roberts, Trumbull, Messner and Bessie Walstad each had two hits; Trumbull and Walstad rapped doubles.

Co-coach David King said, “Defensively we need to get better. We are allowing teams to stay in the games against us and giving them extra outs. We have a tough stretch coming up over our next three games. If we don’t improve, these teams will take advantage and capitalize on them.”