Coupeville Middle School Girls Basketball Closes Home Season Against Sultan

Three royal rumbles defined Monday's home finale at Coupeville Middle School, where the CMS Wolves went wire-to-wire with the Sultan Skyhawks across all three levels of girls' basketball before sending the home crowd to their cars riding a wave of good will.

Sultan escaped with two wins on the day, but the Wolves captured the final bout of the afternoon to close out their last home games of the season. Two of the three contests came down to the final seconds, and even in defeat, Coupeville displayed the kind of resilience and balanced scoring that has made nearly every game this season competitive.

The most agonizing moment came in Level 1, where a second-half rally put Coupeville in position to steal the game before a potential game-winning three-pointer bounced off the rim at the buzzer in a 28-26 loss. That defeat dropped the Level 1 squad to 1-5 on the season, though their record understates how consistently they have competed.

Action photographs by Julie Wheat captured Laurel Crowder rolling to the hoop and Zayne Roos flying toward the basket, images that reflected the aggressive, attacking style the Wolves have been building toward all season.

The growth across three levels was not lost on those watching. "Overall, the teams showed strong defensive growth, aggressive play, and continued effort attacking the rim, exactly the habits that lead to improvement as the season progresses," Brooke Crowder said. That assessment aligned with broader observations that across all three games Monday, the Wolves demonstrated they are more confident and accomplished than they were a month ago.

The season reached its midpoint February 28 after a pair of close games against powerhouse King's, with 22 Wolves having already tallied points at that stage. With the home schedule now complete, Coupeville takes its show on the road: the Wolves traveled to South Whidbey on Tuesday, March 10, and are scheduled to visit Granite Falls on Thursday, March 12, to close out the season.