Walkington, Bulldogs start fast in win over Vikings

SANDPOINT — Senior Riley Walkington scored two goals and dished an assist, and the Bulldogs scored a trio of first half goals to win their season opener 3-1 over Coeur d’Alene in nonleague girls soccer Tuesday at Pine St. Field.

Lynch got the Bulldogs (1-0) on the board first by burying a rebound from Vikings’ keeper Lilly Foster, and shortly after Walking also scored on a rebound after a diving stop by Foster. Her second goal, which gave the Bulldogs a 3-0 lead, hit the crossbar and barely bounced over the line.

Sandpoint head coach Conor Baranski loved the pace his team started the season with.

“That was a pleasant surprise, a much better start than I would have expected. There’s a lot of new names, and they had the confidence to not be afraid,” said Baranski. “They go hard, they want to win. A lot of what they did was their creativity, which is great to see.”

Zoe Cox scored her team’s lone goal in the 55th minute, as the Vikings (0-1) controlled the majority of the second half possession and created some opportunities. Bulldog keeper Hattie Larson made two diving stops, or the game could have been closer.

“Congrats to Sandpoint, they’re a good team and well coached. The first half they came out and dominated, they were winning the 50/50s, they basically had more desire than us,” said Vikings head coach Andy Vredenburg, whose team rebounded well after being shell-shocked early. “In the second half, we came out strong and got the upper hand.”

Sandpoint travels to Lake City on Thursday.

First half — 1, Spt, Emi Lynch (Riley Walkington), 21:00. 2, Spt, Walkington (unassisted), 30:00. 3, Spt, Walkington (Riley Burnett), 35:00. Second half — 4, Cd’A, Zoe Cox (Maddy Morris), 55:00.

Shots on goal — Spt 13, Cd’A 11.

Saves — Spt, Hattie Larson, 9; Cd’A, Lilly Foster, 11.

n Bulldogs blanked in opener

COEUR d’ALENE — It was a tough opener for the Bulldog boys, as a host of brand new varsity players could not slow down the 5A Vikings, who took down Sandpoint 6-0 in a season opener on Tuesday night at Coeur d’Alene High School.

The Bulldogs (0-2), lost to Jerome 2-0 on Saturday in a season opener that had to be moved to the Kibbie Dome because of smoke, lost a huge senior class and are trying to find their footing early in the season. The smoke, which has relegated them to indoor practices, certainly hasn’t helped the cause.

Head coach Evan McNeley, who is expecting a learning curve early in the year, tipped his hat to the Vikings.

“They had some good midfield play, had more opportunities than we did and they buried us,” he said. “We understand we have a lot of work to do as far as growing as a team. I’m excited how we respond on Thursday, need to show a better presence.”

Sandpoint will host Lake City on Thursday in a home opener at 4:30 p.m. at Pine St. Field.

n Season previews coming on Friday

See the Friday Bee for the 2018 Fall Sports Preview, with in-depth previews of all the Bulldog and Wampus Cat teams.