Battle for The Bucket: Coupeville regains rivalry trophy against South Whidbey

Published 2:44 pm Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Coupeville football bent and bent and refused to break in a 35-28 win over South Whidbey to retake the trophy, The Bucket, in another classic island rivalry game.

Playing the 2014 season opener, the Wolves and Falcons went back and forth, scoring a combined nine touchdowns. Coupeville Senior quarterback Joel Walstad, running back Josh Bayne and receiver Wiley Hesselgrave proved the key trio as the Wolves leapfrogged South Whidbey in the fourth quarter.

South Whidbey still had a shot to tie the game in the final two minutes, but a pair of Parker Collins’ passes fell incomplete. That included one through the outstretched fingers of a diving Steve Smith in the end zone on fourth down. With the ball turned over on downs, Coupeville converted a crucial first down and ran out the clock before running over to South Whidbey’s bench and grabbing the coveted Bucket — half painted in Falcon blue and half in Wolves red.

“This is a tough game,” Wolves head coach Tony Maggio said. “We’re beat up. I think they’re a little beat up as well.”

“It sets the tone for the rest of the season,” he added, referring to Coupeville winning its first game with a narrow victory.

In terms of time and score, South Whidbey controlled much of the game after a shaky start, which is what made the loss difficult to accept for the Falcons.

“Everybody’s down,” said Falcon senior captain Deven Damerau, who scored three touchdowns and logged well over 100 rushing yards.

Coupeville took a short kickoff by the Falcons and turned it into quick points on their opening drive. Wolves senior running back Josh Bayne burst through the left side and sprinted 59 yards for a touchdown after only 50 seconds of play. Walstad, who also handled placekicking, booted in the extra point for a 7-0 lead.

“He could be an all-state kid,” Maggio said of Bayne. “He’s going to be the focal point of our offense this year.” 

South Whidbey answered on the ensuing drive. A 31-yard scamper by Damerau set up a 16-yard touchdown fade from Collins to junior Charlie Patterson. Falcon junior Anthony Eveland knocked in the extra point to tie the score.

Penalties marred much of the early play for both teams, but especially holding calls on South Whidbey. Mistakes were prevalent enough to be a point of emphasis for first-year Falcon head coach Chris Tormey after the game.

“When you’re playing against good players, you’ve gotta have good technique and keep your hands inside,” he said. “We were sloppy tonight.”

Turnovers were an issue for both teams, as evidenced by one blunder-filled possession in the second quarter. Damerau recovered a Coupeville fumble and bolted to the Wolves’ 44-yard line, where Bayne knocked it free and Coupeville piled on top of the ball. Two plays later and Falcon senior Ivan Kraabel recovered a Wolves fumble to stop Coupeville just outside the 25-yard line.

“That’s the one thing that we did do: get some takeaways,” said Tormey, of the Falcons’ fumble recoveries and interceptions. “That was our saving grace a few times.”

A penalty backed up the Falcons to their own 10-yard line, and South Whidbey was forced to punt. Senior Trevor Miller booted the ball deep into Coupeville’s half of the field. The Wolves, however, marched downfield thanks to a long run by Hesselgrave and deep throw by Walstad, which set up a 9-yard touchdown strike to Ryan Griggs. Walstad’s extra point kick was wide, however, leaving South Whidbey with 2:43 to try for a halftime tie.

Damerau did his best Marshawn Lynch impersonation with his next touch, turning a tackle-laden short run into a follow-the-blocker, spin-move, jump-cut ballet for a 40-yard touchdown. Eveland’s kick gave the Falcons a 14-13 lead with less than two minutes left in the first half.

Walstad’s first pass on the next possession was picked off by Eveland following the pass rush of junior Xavier Wilson. Eveland ran the ball back to Coupeville’s 39-yard line, setting up the Falcons to within striking distance.

Collins showed off his own ability to run after a hard pump fake throw that he tucked into his armpit and dashed to the Wolves’ 13-yard line. Damerau scored his second touchdown of the night on the next play, pushing South Whidbey’s lead to 21-13.

Coupeville attempted to put points on the board with less than a minute left. It cost them, as Walstad’s pass was intercepted by Patterson and run back across midfield. The Falcons were unable to convert a first down or reach the end zone before halftime, however.

Penalties and turnovers remained an issue for both teams out of the break. On South Whidbey’s first drive of the second half, Collins lost the ball which was recovered by Coupeville. The Wolves turned that turnover into points on a 75-yard drive, capped by a 5-yard touchdown pass from Walstad to Hesselgrave. Walstad ran in the two-point conversion to tie the game 21-21. 

Trying to seize on the momentum, Coupeville tried a short kickoff that was run back by Eveland to the Coupeville 33-yard line. A big catch by sophomore Connor Antich set up a 14-yard rushing score by Damerau — his third and final of the night. Eveland’s extra point kick boosted South Whidbey to 28-21 over Coupeville with a little more than a quarter left.

Coupeville used the two minutes it had in the third quarter effectively. The Wolves charged down the field on throws by Walstad, runs by Bayne and a touchdown catch by Hesselgrave to tie the game going into the final period.

A quick three-and-out by South Whidbey led to Coupeville marching into Falcon territory. But another turnover, an interception by Damerau at the 6-yard line, resulted in a 58-yard run back and the Falcons regaining possession. Two penalties stalled the drive, however, and forced the Falcons to punt again.

This time, Coupeville would not be denied. Walstad led the Wolves downfield with a deep throw to Hesselgrave, thrilling the full Coupeville grandstand and silencing South Whidbey’s fans.

The true silencer was yet to come. On the next play, Bayne bolted away from the Falcons for a 35-yard touchdown run and the first Coupeville lead since the second quarter.

With 3:36 remaining, South Whidbey took possession. Antich’s kickoff run put the Falcons on their own 35-yard line. Damerau broke through the line for a 26-yard run, but a holding call dropped the Falcons back near midfield. A couple of Damerau runs brought the Falcons 15 yards closer to the end zone with two minutes left. Collins tried an end zone pass to Patterson that fell incomplete, followed by the fourth-down end-zone toss to Smith that also fell incomplete.

South Whidbey had to learn from the loss as it prepared to host Anacortes on Friday, Sept. 12 for the Falcons’ first home game. Defensive improvements were key, Tormey said.

“We’ve got to be more fundamentally sound, we’ve got to tackle better,” he said. “We’ve got to improve across the board on defense.”