Putting its fortitude on display, the Coupeville High School volleyball team whipped visiting Orcas Island 3-1 Friday, Sept. 25.

The Wolves entered the match winless in its three matches this fall, then they lost a 25-23 heartbreaker in the first set to Orcas Island (0-4).

Instead of being crushed by blowing a seven-point lead in the narrow loss, Coupeville roared to a 9-1 lead in the second game on the way to clubbing the Vikings 25-14, 25-14, 25-17.

“I was impressed with the way the team came back from a close loss in the first set,” Coupeville coach Breanne Smedley said. “It shows their mental toughness is improving.”

Ally Roberts blasted 11 kills with no hitting errors to fuel the Wolves’s attack. McKenzie Bailey also had 11 kills, Katrina McGranahan added six kills and four aces and Payton Aparicio finished with five kills and three aces.

Lauren Rose set up the offense with 27 assists.

On defense, Valen Trujillo registered 16 digs and McGranahan had a block.

“A great win for our program,” Smedley said. “We had an awesome week of practice preparing for this match and that showed in their confidence and movement on the court.

“We still need to focus on playing our tempo and level of competition regardless of who is on the other side of the net. We are looking forward to next week.”

Coupeville (1-3) travels to Darrington (0-3) for a 6:30 p.m. match Wednesday, Sept. 30, and then returns home the following evening for a 6:30 match with Chimacum (2-1).

(Sydney Autio sets for Coupeville in the 3-1 win over Orcas Island. Photo by John Fisken.)