Bulldogs take down Spartans in home opener
—Photo by ERIC PLUMMER Sandpoint senior Preston Bunty takes down Priest River’s Larry Naccarato in the Bulldogs’ home opening dual against Priest River.
—Photo by ERIC PLUMMER Bulldog sophomore Micah Holub, right, ties up with Manuel Naccarato as the Bulldogs rolled over the Spartans on Tuesday night.
SANDPOINT — Senior Preston Bunty came out and set an early tone with a 17-3 tech fall over Larry Naccarato, leading the Bulldogs to a convincing 58-13 win over Priest River in a season-opening dual Tuesday night at Les Rogers Court.
The win is the first for new head coach Jake Stark, and it came against his alma mater. He admitted it was extra special to get the win against a team he used to coach.
“Yeah, going against your hometown, it’s always sweet to stick it to them,” said Stark, who praised the work of Bunty. “Preston kind of gave us that spark at the beginning and turned momentum to our side. Overall, we had a lot of fight in the dog.”
Tekoa Mazzare (170), Mason Bangeman (120) and Micah Holub (126) were the only Bulldogs to register pins, while Owen Stebbins (182) earned a 17-3 tech fall with a strong showing against Arron Reyes.
Noah Jamison (160) earned a hard-fought 5-2 decision over Hyrum Hunsaker, and Riley DeMent won 6-0 over Tucker Hall to lead the Spartans in defeat.
The Bulldogs, who had several forfeit wins, will get a chance for plenty of mat time at the Inland Empire Wrestling Tournament on Friday and Saturday at Central Valley High School in Spokane.
SANDPOINT 58, PRIEST RIVER 13
145 — Spencer MacDonald, PR, md. Malachi Mazzare, 11-3.
152 — Preston Bunty, Spt, tf. Larry Naccarato, 17-3.
160 — Noah Jamison, PR, d. Hyrum Hunsaker, 5-2.
170 — Tekoa Mazzare, Spt, p. Trevor Rusho, 3:27.
182 — Owen Stebbins, Spt, tf. Arron Reyes, 17-3.
195 — Cal Wilcox, Spt, by forfeit.
220 — Zack Alamillo, Spt, by forfeit.
Hvy — Double forfeit.
98 — Tyson Bushnell, Spt, by forfeit.
106 — Casey Oleson, Spt, by forfeit.
113 — Brandon Downs, PR, d. Parker Coon, 11-5.
120 — Mason Bangeman, Spt, p. Enara Seiler, :38.
126 — Macah Holub, Spt, p. Manuel Naccrato, 1:59.
132 — Riley DeMent, PR, d. Tucker Hall, 6-0.
138 — Scout Nash, Spt, by forfeit.