The Coupeville High School football team’s high-speed offense was stuck in the mud at Concrete as the Lions whipped the Wolves 52-22 Friday, Oct. 31, in a nonleague game.

After heavy rains, the Concrete field was a sloppy mess, according to Coupeville coach Tony Maggio.

“It was the worse I have seen,” he said. “When you stepped on it, you sank up to your ankles in mud.”

Maggio noted that “both teams had to play on it,” so it wasn’t an excuse, adding, “Concrete is a very good team.”

“Their style of play was better suited for those conditions,” he said.

The Wolves rely on speed, and cutting and acceleration were difficult in the muck. To make matters worse, Coupeville’s best power runner, Lathom Kelley, was injured in the first quarter and did not return.

Concrete, behind a large line, plays a power running game with an occasional “pop pass,” according to Maggio.

“They out-muscled us at the line of scrimmage,” Maggio said. “It was right up their alley, not ours. We just couldn’t stop them.”

Had the game been played in better conditions, Maggio said, the Wolves would have been more competitive.

The Lions (7-1) scored two touchdowns to Coupeville’s one in each of the first two quarters, giving them a 28-14 lead at the break.

The game’s turning point came at the beginning of the second half, Maggio said.

The Wolves began the third quarter by recovering an on-side kick and started to march in for a score. The drive, however, stalled and Coupeville came away with nothing.

The momentum shifted back to Concrete, and the Lions, the Northwest 2B/1B League champions, pounded in 24 more points in the quarter to win going away.

Coupeville’s Josh Bayne slid his way to 136 yards on 12 carries for two touchdowns and a two-point conversion. Jacob Martin finished with 30 yards on seven carries, and Wiley Hesselgrave had 23 on three tries.

QB Joel Walstad hit on 12 of 26 passes for 172 yards and a score.

Hesselgrave caught six passes for 77 yards and a touchdown. C.J. Smith grabbed four passes for 52 yards and a two-point conversion, and Ryan Griggs had three catches for 43 yards.

Bayne led the defense with 10 tackles; Aaron Wright had four; and Hesselgrave, Oscar Liquidano and Matt Shank three each.

The Wolves (4-5) wrap up their season with another non-league game, hosting Bellevue Christian (1-6) at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 7.

The Olympic and Nisqually leagues match up non-playoff teams for a final game at the end of each season.

“We want to beat last year’s record,” Maggio said. The Wolves finished 2013 at 4-5.