The top 10 local sports stories of 2021

We have reached the finish line of yet another year. Like most, I have no idea where time went. It seems like I was writing about the end of 2020 — a year we'd all like to forget — just a few months ago.

But here we are on the doorstep of 2022. In honor of that, I am taking a look back on the top 10 local sports stories of 2021.

And let me tell you, it was extremely difficult to narrow it down to just 10. So many incredible things happened that I thought about breaking tradition and expanding the list to 12, 13 or even 15. But after much thought, I'm sticking to my guns.

Because of the sheer number of memorable stories this year, I'm including an honorable mentions list at the end of this piece.

Alright enough build-up, here are the top 10 stories of 2021 in no particular order.

Sandpoint girls golf brings home first state title

Nearly a decade ago, current Sandpoint head coach Mike Deprez formed a pod through the game of golf made up of CeCe Deprez, his daughter, Hattie Larson, Camille Neuder, Annaby Kanning and Karsen Granier.

The five girls were in fifth grade at the time and already best friends, but golf made them nearly inseparable.

At the time, Mike could already see the talent and dedication the girls possessed so he proclaimed them 2020 state champions. Replace the last zero with a one, and Mike was spot on.

In May at The Links Golf Club in Post Falls, CeCe, Larson, Neuder and Kanning led the girls golf team to its first state title in school history. Mike wanted to take the program to another level when he took it over and those four girls helped him make that dream a reality.

"For a 10-year odyssey to finally be fulfilled, there's a certain amount of relief, but there's also a melancholy feeling because it's over," Mike said after the victory.

After coming in third in 2019, the Bulldogs seemed to be destined to deliver on Mike's "2020 state champions" proclamation, but the COVID-19 pandemic ruined those hopes. But the girls didn't let that disappointment get them down. They stuck with it and all their commitment over the years paid off this spring.

Conditions at state were far from ideal. Gusts of 20-40 miles per hour hit the golf course on the final day, but that didn't derail the Bulldogs one bit as they finished 18 points ahead of Twin Falls and Bishop Kelly.

Larson finished in a tie for seventh to earn individual medalist honors for the second time in her career. CeCe was 12th, Kanning 15th and Neuder 16th.

"I will never forget how much fun I had playing with these girls and I will take that with me forever," Neuder said.

A Clark Fork legend passes away

On March 5, Cindy Derr passed away at the age of 65. She was a legend and role model to so many who walked through the halls of Clark Fork High over the last six decades.

She was best known — at least in the world of sports — for being a one-of-a-kind volleyball coach, but she was so much more than that. She was a mentor, a mother, an aunt, a grandma and the heartbeat of an entire town.

The 1973 CFHS grad coached volleyball for over 30 years and a majority of those years were spent in the small town. She took over as head coach of the Clark Fork High volleyball team in 1997 and brought the program unprecedented success. A pair of third-place state trophies and a runner-up one were all a part of Cindy's first stint as head coach.

Her second stint at the helm lasted from 2013-2018. Her niece and current CFHS volleyball coach, Michelle Valliere, took over the job after that. Cindy stepped away from the sidelines for good in 2020 due to health issues.

Over the years, Cindy touched so many lives through the sport of volleyball and she went out of her way countless times to help girls pursue their dreams of playing the sport collegiately.

She started Clark Fork's first offseason volleyball program where she helped foster the next generation of volleyball superstars in the area.

Cindy also left her mark outside of coaching. She started working for the school district in 1978 and was a secretary at CFHS for a handful of years. She refereed her fair share of volleyball matches during her time with the North Idaho Officials Association and was inducted into the Hall of Fame for volleyball referees.

In 2005, Cindy was diagnosed with kidney cancer. She battled the disease off and on for the rest of her life. She also fought through trigeminal neuralgia, a condition that can cause recurring periods of intense, short-lived spasms of pain in the face and jaw.

But Cindy faced those obstacles head-on and never let them stop her from doing what she loved. Her brother, Mark Stevens, said she never gave up in her fight in part because of the athletes she got to coach.

"She loved the kids so much," he said, "that a lot of times that’s what drove her to overcome a lot of this pain was being able to be around the kids and in the gym."

It wasn't easy for the Clark Fork community to bid farewell to Cindy when they learned of her passing, but her memory and legacy lives on.

Priest River raises league, district titles for first time since 2011

The Priest River boys basketball team snapped a decade-long state drought this February.

The Spartans knocked off the seven-time defending district champion Kellogg Wildcats to secure their first 3A District 1 title since 2011. Trentyn Kreager led the way with 28 points and 10 rebounds as Priest River cut down the nets on its home court.

Two years prior, the Spartans finished with a 2-18 record. It was a moment years in the making. Kevin Wylie built the program from the ground up and after several difficult seasons, it all paid off this past winter.

Priest River went on to go 0-2 at state, but they proved the program is here to stay for years to come.

A Cinderella run

A few years ago, Clark Fork boys basketball was desperately fighting to get just five players on the court and a single victory. But in 2021, the Wampus Cats completed the ultimate turnaround, punching a ticket to state for the first time since 2008.

The Wampus Cats thrived in the midst of some favorable circumstances. In the district title game, Mullan was without starter Luke Trogden and they lost Riley Trogden in the second quarter. Clark Fork jumped all over the shorthanded Tigers, cruising to a 53-24 victory and the District 1 crown. Cameron Garcia scored 21 points and Carter Sanroman added 16 as the team amassed 20 steals.

Mullan was also the only team standing in the way of the Wampus Cats and a bid to state. Kootenai didn't field a team in 2021 due to COVID-19, making it a two-horse race for the district title.

But the Wampus Cats did what they had to do and handled their business. They couldn't control what happened around them. Clark Fork rightfully earned a state berth and in the process made history.

The Wampus Cats entered the state tourney with a 4-12 record and their trip was extremely short as they suffered a pair of blowout defeats. Things don't go as planned, but Clark Fork got a taste of state and now they want more.

Bulldogs regain state-title contending form

Sandpoint boys soccer has plenty of history and tradition of bringing home hardware from state, but a trophy eluded them for nearly a decade. In 2021, the Bulldogs made a resurgence and nearly grabbed all the glory.

Sandpoint rolled to a 4-0 victory over Canyon Ridge to open its state run and then earned a thrilling 3-2 overtime win over Hillcrest to secure a spot in the 4A state title game.

Ultimately, the Bulldogs fell to Bishop Kelly 3-1 in the championship game. But even in defeat, Sandpoint made a statement by grabbing its first trophy at state since 2012 when the Bulldogs won their last of eight state titles.

SHS came this close to its ninth state title. Head coach Tanner French said the loss will sting for some time, but his players should never hang their heads when they look back on it because they helped return the program to state relevancy.

Sophomore Eoin Eddy tallied five goals throughout the tourney for a team that put SHS boys soccer back on the map.

Sandpoint grads leave their mark

Three Sandpoint High grads achieved some significant milestones in their lives in 2021.

Amber Laiche, a 2017 Sandpoint High grad, officially earned a spot on the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, one of the most iconic dance teams in the country, in November.

The final 36-person roster was revealed during the season finale of the CMT TV show, "Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team." Laiche was a member of the SHS dance team throughout her high school career and served as team captain her senior year.

Corey Allard won the 22nd running of the Idaho 200 late model stock car race at Stateline Speedway in July to claim the first feature victory of his career.

The 2002 SHS grad has raced in the Idaho 200 over 10 times, with his previous best finish coming in 2017 when he grabbed fourth. Over the years, Allard had won his fair share of exhibition and preliminary races, but this summer he finally claimed the ultimate prize.

Joey Lovell, a 2006 Sandpoint grad, won the men’s Montana State Amateur Championship at Canyon River Golf Club in Missoula in July.

Lovell sunk a birdie putt from about 12 feet away on the final hole of the tournament to claim Montana’s amateur title by a stroke with a three-round score of 197 (-19). It was Lovell’s fourth appearance in the tournament and first title at the event.

All three SHS grads turned their dreams into reality.

A season to remember

The Sandpoint football team appeared to be destined for its second state title in program history in 2021.

The top-seeded Bulldogs advanced to the 4A state championship game for the fifth time in the last 24 years. They brought it all home in 1997 and they poured in the hours over the offseason to make it happen again, but it just wasn't meant to be.

Sandpoint fell to Skyline 20-6 in the title game at the Kibbie Dome. It was the Grizzlies fourth state title in the last six years and eighth overall. Skyline also knocked the Bulldogs out in the state semifinals in 2020.

The Bulldogs were devastated after the state title defeat, but head coach Ryan Knowles couldn’t have been prouder of what his team accomplished, especially his core of 12 seniors.

Three turnovers in the first half plagued SHS and allowed the Grizzlies to jump out to a 14-point halftime lead. The Bulldog defense put forth a stellar effort and kept the team in it, but Sandpoint couldn't muster up enough offense to take down Skyline.

The Bulldogs may have come up short, but they secured the program's fourth runner-up trophy in the last 18 years. With the talent coming back in 2022, the Bulldogs have a chance to make another run at ending their state title drought — and they are already grinding away in the weight room.

PR grad qualifies for Ironman World Championships

Jamie Lake, a 1997 Priest River High grad, placed high enough in her age group at the Coeur d’Alene Ironman in June to secure a spot to the 2021 Ironman World Championships in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.

Ever since Lake decided to participate in her first Ironman in 2015, she’s dreamed of making it to Hawaii. This summer was Lake’s fourth Ironman and she's come up just a few spots short of qualifying for worlds in the past.

Lake placed 12th in her age division, 40-44, at the Coeur d’Alene Ironman to secure a ticket to the world championships. She was also the 72nd female to finish the 112-mile bike ride, 26.2-mile run and 2.4-mile swim in the midst of a record-breaking heat wave.

The 2021 Ironman World Championships were scheduled to take place on Oct. 9, 2021, but the event was postponed to Feb. 5, 2022, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Swim brings home two more trophies

With only 14 swimmers at the 4A state swim meet, the Sandpoint swim team proved once again why they can go toe-to-toe with anyone in Idaho.

The Bulldogs brought home a pair of state trophies this fall at the first in-person state swim meet since 2019. The girls captured second and the boys secured fourth. Since the Idaho High School Activities Association began sanctioning the sport in 2018, the boys and girls have each earned a state trophy every year.

Six Bulldogs medaled in individual events — Ryleigh Bamer, Emily Ballard, Ayiana Prevost, Caleb Norling, Jack Grzincic and Hayden Leavitt. Ballard, Maren Davidson, Ava de Leeuw and Bamer led the girls to a state title in the 200-yard freestyle relay.

Bamer, a freshman, was second in the 100 butterfly and third in the 50 free. Leavitt secured second in the 100 free and 50 free and Norling was runner-up in the 200 free. Leavitt also broke the state meet record in the 100 free during prelims.

The girls, who also grabbed second in the 400 free relay, finished 73.5 points behind state champion Bishop Kelly.

Boys track makes history, Kappen captures state title

The Sandpoint boys track team returned from the 4A state track meet in May with a piece of hardware that's been hard to come by in the history of the program.

The Bulldog boys placed third at state to earn their first trophy at state since 2004 and their highest finish at state since 2003 when they won their first and only state title. It is also believed to be just the third state trophy the boys have received in the history of the program.

The boys finished with 50 team points, one point ahead of fourth place Emmett and five behind second place Pocatello. And they did it with only 14 boys competing at state.

The Bulldogs needed some special performances to rack up enough points to grab third, and they got them. Braden Kappen and Rusty Lee medaled in all four of the events they competed in at state.

Kappen set the tone for the rest of the team by claiming the state title in the boys long jump with a personal record leap of 23 feet, 1 inch.

Lee was second in the 300 hurdles with a 40.35, breaking the school record in the event, and third in the 110 hurdles.

Overall, 13 Bulldogs brought home medals at state. In the pole vault, four girls medaled for Sandpoint. Taylor Petz captured second, Erika Edmundson placed third, Quinn Hooper grabbed fifth and Piper Frank was sixth. As a team, the girls finished ninth, their best result since taking eighth in 2014.

Honorable Mentions:

92-year-old completes Long Bridge Swim

Priest River dropping down to 2A for next classification cycle

Clark Fork doubles pair places fourth at state

SHS cheer takes third at state in co-ed stunt

SHS cross country sweeps regionals for ninth straight year

Clark Fork volleyball grabs fifth straight district title

SHS baseball gets back to state

Bulldog tennis sweeps regional titles

Bulldogs punch ticket to state for seventh time in eight years

SHS girls soccer falls in regional title game after undefeated regular season