Bulldogs bully Bears, earn spot in state semifinals

SANDPOINT — Kings of the North.

Sandpoint football dominated 4A Inland Empire League rival Moscow 31-13 on Friday night in the state quarterfinals to advance to the semifinals for the first time since 2015.

"Today was about us and protecting the point and northern supremacy, baby," head coach Ryan Knowles said with a smile after the game.

With the victory, the Bulldogs became the fifth team in school history to win two playoff games in a single postseason.

"I'm so thankful to get another week with these guys," Knowles said. "It's a fun ride, we just got to keep ridin'."

Senior linebacker Tag Benefield said the energy in the locker room after the game was something else and listening to "Country Roads" made it even sweeter.

"We have a great team right now, it feels amazing to be able to get to the semifinals," he said. "We've had it all year every time after a win, especially Moscow. We don't like Moscow and when we beat Moscow, it feels great."

The Bulldogs (5-4) played a near-perfect game and the team couldn't have scripted a better start. The defense forced Moscow to go three-and-out on its first three possessions and the offense found the end zone on back-to-back drives to open the game.

The first touchdown of the night came courtesy of sophomore quarterback Parker Pettit, who snuck the ball in from a yard out to give SHS a 7-0 lead midway through the opening quarter.

In the second quarter, Pettit connected with senior Elijah Larson for a 11-yard touchdown to give the Bulldogs a 14-0 advantage.

Early on, the Sandpoint defense overwhelmed the Bears and made Moscow quarterback Chad Redinger pay every time he stepped back to pass.

Isaac Webb, Blake Sherrill, Keith Jensen, Will Hurst, Wes Benefield and the rest of the Bulldogs' defense lived in the Moscow backfield.

"All week the defense wanted to get after the run game," Benefield said. "We implemented just a new little thing for the defensive end to be able to get in there and stuff the run so they didn't have a lot of running there. We just had a great mentality going in, didn't want to give up any completions and we wanted to stop them for one yard or less every time they ran the ball."

Sandpoint shut out Moscow in the first half and only allowed the Bears to gain one first down, which came by way of a penalty.

The Sandpoint offense continued pounding the Bears on their first drive in the second half, but instead of focusing on the short-passing game, the Bulldogs handed it off to bell cow Gerrit Cox.

The junior running back tore through the Moscow defense and got Sandpoint down to the 7-yard-line before Elek Christoferson hit a 27-yard field goal to make it 17-0.

Following a Sandpoint interception midway through the third quarter, Moscow finally broke through when Lane Hanson ran it in from 8 yards out.

The Bulldogs responded on their next possession when Pettit hit senior Max Thielbahr for a 5-yard score with 9:29 left in the game.

Cox sealed the game two and half minutes later when he bulldozed through the Moscow defense for a 20-yard touchdown run.

Cox finished with 138 rushing yards on 21 carries. Pettit went 16-19 for 105 yards and had three total touchdowns. Sophomore Cody Newhart led the receivers with six catches for 62 yards.

The Bulldogs had 25 first downs in the game while the Bears managed to get seven.

The Sandpoint defense held Moscow to 48 yards on the ground and 67 through the air. The team also silenced University of Utah commit Jonah Elliss, holding him to 23 total yards.

Knowles said when his defense is at its best, it's fun to watch.

"I love this defense," he said. "They just want you to snap the ball because they want to play and that's what you want."

It was a complete game for the Bulldogs in all facets and Knowles believed his team had this in them.

"To see them execute at that level it's awesome," he said. "As I told half of them in there, they are playing beyond their years. They shouldn't be doing this right now, but they are and I'm happy to coach them. This kind of success breeds a competitive nature in them."

Now the Bulldogs will meet No. 1 Skyline (10-1) in the state semifinals next Friday.

Sandpoint will have to take the long bus ride to Idaho Falls, but Benefield knows his team is up for the task and their confidence couldn't be any higher.

"We want to go to the state final so bad, they're just in our way of getting there," he said. "We can't wait to beat them."

Knowles said he's thankful his team has been able to reward the community for their support throughout the season by making it to the semifinals and he's eager to take the field against the Grizzlies.

"To be the best, you've got to beat the best and that's going to be the battle cry all week," he said.

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4

SHS 7 7 3 14 — 31

MHS 0 0 7 6 — 13

First quarter

SHS — Parker Pettit 1 yd run (Elek Christoferson kick), 5:23

Second quarter

SHS — Elijah Larson 11 yd pass from Parker Pettit (Elek Christoferson kick), 9:23

Third quarter

SHS — Elek Christoferson 27 yd Field Goal, 8:44

MHS — Lane Hanson 8 yd run (Cody Isakson kick), 1:46

Fourth quarter

SHS — Max Thielbahr 5 yd pass from Parker Pettit (Elek Christoferson kick), 9:29

SHS — Gerrit Cox 20 yd run (Elek Christoferson kick), 6:51

MHS — Isaiah Murphy 7 yd run (kick blocked), 4:39

Individual stats

SHS Rushing: Gerrit Cox 21-138, Elijah Larson 1-(-2), Parker Pettit 11-30, Braden Kappen 8-30

SHS Receiving: Braden Kappen 1-(-3), Max Thielbahr 3-28, Gerrit Cox 2-(-2), Elijah Larson 3-20, Cody Newhart 6-62

KOR: Cox 1-13, Kappen 2-46

MHS Rushing: Lane Hanson 4-6, Isaiah Murphy 9-25, Jonah Ellis 1-7, Chad Redinger 1-8, Leon Hanson 1-2

MHS Receiving: Isaiah Murphy 1-17, Lake Hanson 1-(-6), Cody Isakson 3-35, Jonah Elliss 2-16, Jamari Simpson 1-5

MHS PR: Jonah Elliss 1-3,

MHS KOR: #17 1-15, Lane Hanson 2-46, Jonah Elliss: 1-18