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SHS football heads to Lewiston looking to build off first win

by DYLAN GREENE
Sports Editor | September 25, 2020 1:00 AM

SANDPOINT — After an unscheduled bye week, Sandpoint football is back in action tonight and will make the three-hour bus ride south to take on Lewiston (2-2).

Last Friday's home game with Minico was canceled due to poor air quality, giving the Bulldogs a week off. That gave the Bulldogs (1-2) extra time to prepare for their second road game of the year and some rest as they enter the second half of their season.

“It was a little bit of downtime which doesn’t hurt at this time of year, but I think it would have been great to play,” head coach Ryan Knowles said.

The Bulldogs’ first win of the season on Sept. 11 against Lake City seems like a lifetime ago, but Knowles said his team hasn’t lost a step and it’s back to business as usual.

Lewiston is coming off a 39-24 loss to Lakeland last Friday at the Kibbie Dome. In their season opener, the Bengals shocked defending 4A state champ Kuna 37-30 and the following week they outlasted Lake City in a shootout 50-48.

But now Lewiston is on a two-game losing streak following losses to Post Falls and the Hawks, and the Bengals are eager to get back in the win column.

Last year, Sandpoint completely dominated Lewiston at War Memorial Field cruising to a 30-0 win. Gerrit Cox ran for 245 yards and the defense shut down the Bengals. It was arguably the Bulldogs’ most impressive win of 2019.

Knowles said he’s sure Lewiston will be looking for revenge Friday night and he wouldn’t be surprised if the Bengals taped up newspaper articles about last year's loss in their weight room to motivate them during the offseason.

“I guarantee you they remember last year and we’ve talked about it since last year that if you beat a team like that you’re going to get their best shot,” he said. “What we have to do is put [last year] behind us and look at where we’re at as a team right now.”

The Bengals have unleashed a new offense this season and so far they’ve been pretty effective, scoring just over 34 points per game.

Lewiston utilizes a two-back system and spreads the field with three wide receivers. Senior quarterback Kash Lang has the ability to stretch the field with his arm and Knowles said Lang carries the load for the Bengals in the run game.

“They have changed their offense quite a bit from last year and after four games it’s kind of shown who they are,” he said. “We see a unique offense this week that has two backs in it which we rarely see two backs nowadays.”

Knowles said his defense will need to be sound with their assignments and keep Lang in the pocket when he drops back to pass.

“They have the pieces, there’s no question,” Knowles said about Lewiston.

The Sandpoint defense is no stranger to 5A Inland Empire League offenses. The Bulldogs have faced three so far this season, so they’ll be up for the challenge.

Sandpoint has leaned heavily on linebackers Wes and Tag Benefield this season. Wes leads the team in tackles with 39 while Tag has 32.

On the edge, defensive end Isaac Webb has set the tone for the Bulldogs with two sacks while defensive tackle Keith Jensen has been a force in the middle with five tackles for loss and one sack.

On offense, the Bulldogs have finally started to find their way after a slow start and shuffling around three players at quarterback in their first two games. Sophomore Parker Pettit has taken hold of the starting job and tossed three touchdowns in the win over Lake City.

Cox still hasn’t had a breakout game on the ground, but he’s due for one and the offensive line in front of him has started to take shape.

Sandpoint is hitting its stride at the right time. Knowles expected it to take a few weeks for his young team to find their rhythm, but the experience they’ve gotten under their belt so far this season is starting to pay dividends.

“The sophomores that are playing are becoming juniors very quickly,” he said. “I see them truly getting better every time we step on the field.”

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. tonight at Bengal Field. You can listen to the game on AM 1400 KSPT or ROCK 103. The game will also be livestreamed on Sportscope. The cost to watch is $5 per game.