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Chalk it up to scheduling happenstance, weather cancellations minimizing non-league action, or pure chance, but the Sandpoint softball team needed a clean slate. After all, the Bulldogs had played eight-straight 4A Inland Empire League games leading up to this past Tuesday.

Then their against West Valley (Wash.) happened.

“The girls have really been pressing during league play over the last couple weeks, so was great to see them play loose and have fun,” Sandpoint head coach Elizabeth Hawkins-Williams said. “We still need to work on closing the door when we have two outs on defense, but the girls were much better at executing the process. It was great for me to be able to watch them play a game they love and see them enjoying it.”

Playing without the pressure of league standings, or of playing opponents they knew they’d face later on, the Bulldogs made the most of their plate appearances and pitches against the Eagles. Although the Bulldogs would lose 14-4, the five innings of work helped the team rediscover its collective love for the sport — and get on the same page. Sandpoint’s pitching regrouped, which led to the defense tightening up and the offense respond — albeit in flashes — to West Valley’s quick 10-2 lead through three innings.

“Jaycie [Irish] and Tanis [Davis] did a great job at hitting their spots today, which gave the defense behind them the chance to make plays,” Hawkins-Williams said. “Tanis was jamming the batter’s and throwing hard today. The right side of our defense was busy, but played near-flawlessly. Natalie Petit turned two heads up double plays at first base and Riley Cessna made some great grabs on line drives and diving plays for outs.”

The offense, however, would come too little, too late. Ember Dewey’s two-out, two-RBI double in the fourth to send Petit and Steiger home looked like the catalyst the offense needed, but the rally was quelled as quickly as it began. Sandpoint played with its back against the wall from that point forward, as West Valley inched closer to winning by run-rule until it finally achieved that result in the fifth.

Sandpoint (3-12) will travel to Post Falls on Thursday for a 4 p.m. game.

Sandpoint 110 20 — 4 5 2

West Valley 208 23 — 14 13 1

Game called in the 5th by run-rule.

W — Homer, 4. L — Irish, 1 (1-5).

HITS: Sandpoint — Authier, Petit 2, Steiger. 2B — Dewey. West Valley — Taylor 2, Stevens 2, Hogeweide 3, Thompson 3, Moore. 2B — Jocltec. 3B — Taylor.