Fall sports leave behind memorable moments

The 2006 falls sports season has come and gone, leaving behind many memorable moments. The following is a smattering of some of the highlights from a sports reporter's perspective.

? SHS teacher Wendy Auld deserves a big thank you for compiling the Bulldogs' football statistics every Friday night. As if that weren't enough work, she voluntarily comes down to the Bee to tabulate and type them up for the paper, helping facilitate a hectic deadline. On road games she travels with the team and calls in the results. Her efforts enrich the stories immensely.

? Senior Jackie Palaniuk provided my favorite quote from the season. After winning districts and securing a state berth, she answered a question regarding how the volleyball team went from two wins the previous year to qualifying for state.

"Oh my god, we worked our (tails) off. I'm not going to lie, we earned what we got. We're going all the way for sure."

Turns out she was prophetic, as they won a state championship the following weekend. Her spontaneity, emotion and telling-it-like-it-is style sort of captured high school sports. I also learned a valuable lesson about some of the reader's sensibilities — hence the euphemisms from here on out.

? I'll admit to never having watched a high school volleyball game prior to working at the Bee. Having said that, it took only two years to convince me that the only indoor fall sport best exemplifies the essence of sports.

This year Sandpoint was locked with Coeur d'Alene in a tightly contested five-game battle. The action was intense as the momentum went back and forth, with nearly every point ending by a couple of players diving to the floor. During a time out in the pivotal fifth game, I couldn't help but notice the players from both teams dancing to some rap music being played. They were all smiling and seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the moment.

That is what sports should be about. After the game it was hard to tell by the faces who won or lost. Proper perspective can sometimes be lost in sports — on every level. The teams are skilled, they hustle, and compete with all they have — all the while laughing and smiling.

? Old sports cliches always seem to pop up when the playoffs start. It's usually along the lines of "you can throw the records out the window," or "everyone is 0-0 now." Ask Burley or Skyview just how true those adages are. Or better yet, ask the Sandpoint boys' soccer team.

The Bulldogs entered the state tournament with a losing record, while Skyview and Burley were both undefeated. Three days later, the Bulldogs hopped on a bus back north having just dispatched the field. The state championship trophy seemingly riding shotgun with its rightful owner.

And fret not girls' soccer team. If this season was any indication, your time is coming real soon.

? If Bulldogs' punter Will Andrews is not first-team All-State, I vow to launch a formal protest. I've watched a lot of high school football in my day, and Andrews is the best punter I've ever seen at this level. He routinely hit bomb after bomb after bomb, usually saving his best kicks for when the Bulldogs needed them most. I'm not sure what his season average was, but the majority of his punts traveled more than 50 yards, and most had enough hang time to warrant an in-flight movie. If he so chooses, there are a lot of colleges out there that could use a punter of his caliber.

? Swimming and cross country are not at the top of the popularity pole in the hierarchy of sports, but when it comes to team spirit, they can more than hold their own. Until you've been poolside, stuffed like sardines among 200 people in a space equipped to hold half that many, and watched two swimmers go neck and neck toward the finish line, you don't know how loud a high school sport can be. The best part is, it's nearly as loud when the last place swimmer finally makes it near the finish line. The same is true in cross country, where it is often times louder when middle of the pack runners finish than it is when the winners cross. Runners that finish always return to the course immediately to root their team mates on.

? My favorite moment of fall sports was during a cross country meet at the Sandpoint Invitational at Riley Creek Campground. Midway through the race, Priest River's Andrew Scott was leading when he made a wrong turn and probably lost 10 seconds to the field before turning around, having finally heard the screams of a Coeur d'Alene coach. What struck me was the reaction of the coach, who frustratingly murmured "doggone it Priest River." The coach of an opposing team was genuinely upset, for no other reason than the fairness of the race was somehow compromised. It was a classy gesture, which speaks to the true spirit of competition.

? My apologies if I misspelled your name this season, and there are many of you out there. I try to get names right, and make deadline mistakes as well as sometimes getting the wrong information to begin with. However, if I don't know I'm spelling a name wrong, I can't go about correcting it. So please, if I misspell a name, let me know immediately. I will thank you for it, and guarantee it won't happen again.

For comments, suggestions or story ideas, please call sports at 263-9534, ext. 226, or e-mail "eplummer@cdapress.com"