Just like the Seattle Mariners, when trouble comes for the Coupeville High School baseball team, it comes in a hurry.

Wednesday’s Cascade League game against South Whidbey was a prime example of how things have gone for the Wolves in too many games this season.

Coming off a 7-1 loss to the Falcons on Monday, the Wolves were locked in a scoreless tie until the top of the sixth inning when nearly everything that could have

gone wrong for Coupeville did, short of a tsunami sweeping away

the backstop at Robert W. Sherman Field.

For five innings Cory Black pitched a strong game for Coupeville as he worked his way

out of trouble in the first and fifth innings thanks to some good defense, a key strikeout and a runner getting thrown out at second base trying to steal — but that was about to change.

The disastrous sixth inning started off in a normal fashion with the Falcons’ Paul Saelens leading off with a single.

One pitch later, Saelens broke for second base and Coupeville catcher Casey Larson made a perfect throw — except nobody was covering the bag. The ball caromed off the base and into

left field, and Saelens scooted over to third.

The next batter rolled out to first baseman Tony Prosser for the first out of the inning with

Saelens remaining at third.

On a one ball, two strike count designated hitter Pat Smith was fooled by a Black offering but managed to get the end of the bat on the ball and sure enough, his cue shot found a hole between Prosser and second baseman Kyle Wilcox for a run-scoring single.

The Wolves failed to turn a double play on the next batter, Aaron Mannie’s ground ball, but did get the second out and were still in good shape with two out, a runner on first and one run in.

Nick Davis followed with a single and Danny Parra was hit with a pitch and just like that, the bases were loaded and the cauldron of trouble was beginning to boil.

When Nick Tenuta hit a pop up on the infield Coupeville appeared to be out of the inning but somehow the ball dropped safely and Mannie crossed the plate with South Whidbey’s second run.

That brought up number three hitter Lakota Holder, who had collected a pair of singles and a walk in his three previous plate appearances.

On a two ball and no strike delivery from Black, Holder hammered the ball over Coupeville right fielder Zach Hauser’s head and out of Robert Sherman Field for a grand slam giving the Falcons a 6-0 lead.

The Wolves did get a run back in the bottom of the sixth on a single by James Smith, a Larson double and an RBI single by Hauser but it was far from enough and Coupeville went down to defeat for the 10th time this season.

Smith and Larson had two hits each for Coupeville.

Holder had three hits and drove in four runs and Saelens along with Pat Smith had two hits apiece.