A Decade of Champions: soccer teams reclaim titles
SANDPOINT — Charting eerily similar courses, the Sandpoint boys and girls soccer teams won state titles on the same day for the fourth time in five years.
Both teams also exorcised the demons of the previous year, when neither claimed a state title for the first time in the decade, reclaiming what they felt was rightfully theirs.
The two banners marked the only team state titles won by Sandpoint in 2004, and reaffirmed Sandpoint’s status as state soccer royalty. Two other teams would claim academic state titles in 2004 (see below), to round out the year.
n 2004 Sandpoint boys soccer
ROSTER: Michael Brewer, Alex Crossingham, Seth Baker, Anthony Sorentino. R.J. Dixon, Brandon Eddy, Chris Hepperly, Kyle Van Dyk, Hunter Jones, Luke Schramm, Kyle Meaux, Tanner Welch, Brent Henry, Chase Lowther, Joe Dibble, Gunnar Paulsen, Sheldon Kernodle and head coach Randy Thoreson.
Save for a shocking loss to Kuna in the previous year’s 4A championship, Sandpoint would have claimed a dynastic fifth consecutive state title.
Surprisingly, the Bulldogs had to win a play-in game just to get to state, having lost to Moscow in the regional final. The team finished with a 17-4-1 record on the year.
Once at the state tournament, it as business as usual, as the Bulldogs shutout three consecutive opponents en route to the title. Brent Henry scored three of Sandpoint’s five tournament goals, and freshman Alex Crossingham scored the lone goal in a 1-0 win over Blackfoot in the championship game.
“A lot of people doubted us this year, and it’s great to prove them wrong,” said Anthony Sorentino, who would be named the Inland Empire League Defender of the Year and go on to play soccer at Villanova. “Last year, we felt like we got robbed, so it was nice to show everyone we’re the best.”
The back four of Sorentino, Kyle Van Dyk, Gunnar Paulsen and Joe Dibble pitched a shutout at state, with the help of keeper Seth Baker.
Quote of the Year: “This year will be a much better bus ride home,” said Randy Thoreson after the championship.
n 2004 Sandpoint girls soccer
ROSTER: Abby Jensen, Allison Gillis, Brooke Donnelly, Kyle France, Katie Adams, Angie Menghini, Tori Allmaras, Sara Krabacher, Tori Smith, Elle Carne, Kaela Wohlschager, Margo Lane, Kasey McKittrick, Jessica Meyers and head coach Adam Tajan.
An old sports axiom says it’s tough to beat a team three times in the same year. The Sandpoint girls did one better, beating rival Moscow four times in 2004, including a 3-1 win in the 4A state championship game.
“Unless we do something crazy or off the wall, we should win,” head coach Adam Tajan told the Bee before the championship. “I can’t think of a group that deserves it more.”
Angie Menghini, Allison Gillis and Elle Carne each scored in the final, and Sara Krabacher and Tori Allmaras split time between the pipes. The win capped a state tournament in which the Bulldogs, who finished the season with a sparkling 18-2-3 record, outscored their opponents 14-1.
Senior Kylie France, who would go on to play at Northern Arizona University, was named the Inland Empire League Most Valuable Player, and Carne was named IEL Top Defender. Senior Abby Jensen went on to have a stellar career at Eastern Washington University.
Quote of the year: “I started screaming and told her that I loved her — because she fed me such a beautiful ball; it was amazing,” said Angie Menghini, after teammate Allison Gillis assisted her on the first goal of the state final.
n 2004 Sandpoint volleyball team
While the team failed to win its third consecutive state championship on the court, it did excel in the classroom, boasting a gaudy 3.7 team GPA to win the academic state championship.
n 2004 Sandpoint football team
Not only was this team an offensive juggernaut on the gridiron, but in the classroom as well, winning the academic state championship with a team GPA of 3.7.
See tomorrow’s Daily Bee for a look at the 2006 state champions, as the Bulldogs failed to claim any banners in the year 2005.