'They were bound and determined'

SANDPOINT — Four years ago, head coach Satini Puailoa returned for his second stint coaching at Sandpoint, inheriting a down program with a group of freshman who were hungry to turn things around and make a run at the school’s second state championship.

On Saturday at rain-soaked Barlow Stadium, the No. 3 ranked Bulldogs leaned heavily on a deep senior class, pounding their way to a 31-22 win over No. 2 Rigby and advancing to the state championship game next Saturday against Bishop Kelly.

For Puailoa and his charges, the hard-hitting, wet and muddy win, their seventh straight, was the payoff for four years of hard work and commitment.

“They were bound and determined. It was a lot of fun, but we worked our ass off to get here,” said Puailoa, whose team was in control of the game from start to finish. “We kept coming at them. A lot of guys stepping up and making plays on both sides of the ball. You see kids work their ass off, and this is what it looks like.”

The Bulldogs (8-3) opened the scoring with a 28 yard field goal from Michael Plaster, the only points of a first quarter that found players on both teams struggling to adjust to the slick, rain-soaked field.

Momentum swung the Bulldogs’ way early in the second quarter, when a punt hit the back of a Rigby player, before Levi Irish capped a quick 20 yard drive with a one-yard plunge for a 10-0 lead, which would stand up until halftime.

After a Rigby punt on their first possession of the third quarter, Sandpoint receiver Wyatt McCormick-Cox capped a drive with a 16 yard scoring strike from Davan Norris for a 16-0 lead. McCormick-Cox finished with 161 yards receiving, his fourth straight 100 yard game, and continues to be nearly unstoppable in the passing attack.

“We’ve got a lot of offensive weapons,” admitted Puailoa. “The advantage goes to the receiver on this type of track.”

Rigby (8-4) had a weapon of their own, and senior quarterback Hayden Livingston showed why he’s one of the top players in the state, almost singlehandedly leading a comeback and keeping his team in the game.

After receiver Cody Heath, who finished with 100 yards receiving, caught a long pass down to the two yard line, Livingston got the Trojans on the board with a two-yard scoring plunge, cutting the lead to 16-8 after finding Solo Taylor on a two-point conversion.

Livingston had several big runs on fourth down to extend drives, and finished the game with 200 yards passing and 120 yards rushing, earning the respect of the opposing coach, who had game-planned heavily to stop him.

“Twelve (Livingston) got hot, and they weren’t going to go down easy,” claimed Puailoa. “This was a great football game.”

The two teams would then trade scores, with Matthew Timothy catching a 3-yard out route from Norris to extend the lead to 24-8 late in the third quarter, before Rigby had a big answer when Livingston found a wide open Braden Perrenoud deep over the middle for a 35 yard scoring strike. A tackle-eligible two-point play cut the lead to one score at 24-16 with 6:40 left in the game, giving the Trojans brief life on the sideline.

Rigby head coach Randy Waite liked the way his team battled, but tipped his cap to a game Sandpoint squad.

“They were more physical than us in the first half. We win the ones we deserve, and they (Sandpoint) deserve it,” said Waite, whose team’s potent spread offense attack was slowed by the muddy conditions. “Both teams played on it. It made a difference, but Sandpoint just beat us. I was proud of our team, they just kept coming, they just kept playing.”

With things suddenly tight, Logan Magro made arguably the biggest play of the game, laying out for a huge catch on third down, keeping the drive alive before Norris made a nifty 19 yard scramble to paydirt to bump the lead back to 31-16 with 4:50 left.

The 6-foot-3 senior quarterback, who is re-writing the Sandpoint record books, said the win means everything.

“We worked all season long for this moment,” said Norris, praising the bigs’ play in the trenches. “We controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.”

On the ensuing possession, the Trojans marched 70 yards in less than a minute, keyed by a leaping comeback catch by Kyler Buckway. Livingston scampered in from 16 yards out to cap the drive, and after a failed two-point conversion the lead was 31-22 with four minutes left.

Rigby was unsuccessful on a second onside attempt, and soon thereafter the Bulldogs were ringing the victory bell.

“You go through ups and downs, and when you finally get there it’s surreal. All the hard work pays off,” said senior linebacker Paul Sundquist, a heart and soul player and leader of the defense. “This is the last time on this field. That’s something I’ll remember the rest of my life.”

Next up for the Bulldogs is a date with No. 1 ranked Bishop Kelly, which beat Century 56-20 in the other semi-final. Senior running back Kyle Perry, who slogged his way to 89 tough yards, already has his sights on Bishop Kelly.

“We’ll let it soak in tonight and then focus on next week,” said Perry, eager to face the top-ranked Knights. “They like to pound it. They’ve got a rough style, but so do we.”

The 4A championship will kick off at 1 p.m. on Saturday in the Kibbie Dome.

SPT 3 7 14 7 — 31

RIG 0 0 8 14 — 22

SPT — Michael Plaster 28 field goal

SPT — Levi Irish 1 run (Plaster kick)

SPT — Wyatt McCormick-Cox 16 catch from Davan Norris (kick fail)

RIG — Hayden Livingston 3 run (Solo Taylor catch from Livingston)

SPT — Jake Timothy 3 catch from Norris (Norris run)

RIG — Braden Perrenoud 35 catch from Livingston (Nate Franz catch from Livingston)

SPT — Norris 19 run (Plaster kick)

RIG — Livingston 16 run (run fail)?

? ??

? SHS RHS ?

First Downs 16 11

Rushes-yds 39-169 31-186

Passing Yds 236 200

QB 11-18 15-26

Interceptions 0 0

Punts-Ave 3-37 5-31

Fumbles-Lost 4-1 2-2

Penaties 7-60 3-35

SHS Rushing: Kyle Perry 18-79, Tyler Presser 1-0, Levi Irish 2-17, Davan Norris 9-44, Mike Plaster 7-34

SHS Receiving: Logan Magro 3-50, Wyatt Cox 5-161, Jake Timothy 2-26, Mike Plaster 1- (-1)

SHS PR: Colton Engel 3-10

SHS KOR: Kyle Perry 1-30, Logan Magro 1-17

RHS Rushing: Solo Taylor 7-49, Hayden Livingston 15-120, Matt Anderson 8-13, Wyatt Poole 1-4

RHS Receiving: Solo Taylor 3-37, Bo Byington 1-1, Brandon Smith 1-2, Kyler Buckway 6-60, Cody Heath 6-100

RHS KOR: Trever Orr 1-7, Solo Taylor 2-31