Heartbreak in Coupeville

"..... Wolves lose Pat Bennett to injury, then game in overtime "

“After sophomore Bryce Boyd of Darrington grabbed a defensive rebound and his team worked the basketball up court, shouts to stop the game rang out from the stands as Coupeville senior Pat Bennett lay face down writhing in pain under the Loggers’ basket. Bennett missed the rest of the game as he sat behind his team’s bench with his foot elevated and packed in ice. The loss of Bennett during the fourth quarter was the beginning of the end for the Wolves. Foul limits cost Coupeville two more starters as the Wolves lost to the undefeated Loggers, 50-43 in overtime.“It was more of a scare than anything,” Coupeville junior Geoff Hageman said of Bennett’s injury. “In a game like this where we need every single person to participate, to lose one like him it’s a hard feeling.”The ankle sprain will force Bennett to the sidelines for the second time this season as he missed the teams’ first seven games due to an injury. Bennett is expected to play this Friday when the Wolves take on Friday Harbor.Bennett was joined on the bench by starters Noah Roehl and Chris Good, as both fouled out of the game during the closing minutes of the fourth quarter. Good and Roehl combined for 22 points and 16 rebounds during the game. That left the Wolves shorthanded heading into overtime.“It is tough to beat them without those guys,” said King. “And it pretty much came down to that. The firepower was missing.” The loss of the three front line-starters hurt most inside, where the Wolves were desperate for points and rebounds. “During the fourth quarter we lost our ability to rebound and we needed that extra big guy out there,” said Hageman.It didn’t help that Coupeville’s outside shooting touch went cold. Three pointer after three pointer clanked off of the rim for the Wolves. “We had a lot of good looks but they just didn’t go down for us,” said King. Coupeville junior Sean Calahan’s two free throws were the only points for the team in overtime, as Coupeville was outscored 9-2 during the period. “When Pat went down I knew that I was up,” said Calahan. “It was really hard, there was a lot of pressure but I just tried to get as many rebounds as I could.”Calahan had three of his team’s four rebounds during the overtime.“He is a part of our four quad of big men,” said King. “He’s done nothing but responded well in every situation.”The Wolves came out blazing during the first quarter but fouls and turnovers kept Darrington in the game. Coupeville never pulled away during the second period and the Loggers tied the game for the first time at the half, 20-20. During the third quarter, with the Loggers up by just two, Coupeville senior Ty Blouin drained a shot from behind the arc for an apparent three-pointer and the lead. But the nearest official ruled it a two-pointer.With the fans behind him screaming to the scoring table “it was a three,” King questioned the officials on the shot. After a discussion on the court, one official — while pointing to his eyes — said that he did not see the shot to call it and it stood as just a two-pointer.“I saw it he was about a foot away from the line,” said Roehl. “That was ridiculous. It was just a horrible call. That would have won the game, we wouldn’t have gone into overtime.”“They are going to miss things, that’s just a part of the game,” said King. “It’s a tough job if you have never done it.”The Wolves may have gotten the call back when a Logger player heaved up a half court shot as the time expired on the third quarter. Officials waived the shot off after the ball had passed through the net instead of while the ball was in the air.The Wolves traveled to Concrete Tuesday. Results were not available at press time. Darrington 50, Coupeville 43 OT Darrington 5 15 8 13 9 — 50 Coupeville 8 12 10 11 2 — 43 Darrington: Schillhammer 9, Bryson 9, McCoy 7, Grimmer 9, Rankin 2, Bogart 2, Boyd 12. Coupeville: Blouin 6, Sherman 2, Helm 2, Roehl 5, Bennett 6, Calahan 6, Good 16. 3-point goals: Schillhammer 1, Bryson 3, McCoy 1, Grimmer. JV score: Darrington 52, Coupeville 50. Records: Darrington 7-0 in league, 12-2. Coupeville 2-4, 6-8. “