PREP FOOTBALL: Bulldogs battle injuries in shutout loss to CDA

SANDPOINT — The Bulldogs, who were short several key starters Friday, were defeated 19-0 by Coeur d’Alene in a defensive battle at War Memorial Field.

Coeur d’Alene came out strong, and within the first seven minutes, the Vikings already had 14 points up on the board after two rushing touchdowns, a 4-yard rushing touchdown by Owen Harris and a 70-yard rushing touchdown by Carson Speelman. The two combined for 240 total yards on the night.

In the second quarter, Sandpoint was trapped at their own 1-yard line. The Vikings sacked Hunter Garcia in the endzone for a safety to make the score 16-0. Coeur d’Alene struck again with just 16 seconds left in the half as Jayson Cady knocked a 26-yard field goal through the uprights.

In the second half, both teams’ defenses did not let up much. Neither team scored in the second half, resulting in a 19-0 Vikings victory.

Sandpoint had several chances in the latter half of the contest. Wylie Wimmer recovered a fumble on the Coeur d’Alene 13-yard line with 4:21 left in the third, but the Bulldogs came up empty. Sandpoint was 0-for-2 inside the redzone on the night.

Hunter Garcia initially started the game at quarterback for the Bulldogs, but was replaced by sophomore Braden Buckhout after an undisclosed injury. Sandpoint was also missing key seniors Blayne Kanning and Shane Sherrill on defense. However, Max Frank saw his first plays of the season, coming back from an ankle injury.

Offensively, Frank was the go-to option on the night. He had nine rushes for 34 yards and two receptions for 45 yards. Kody Brewster had nine rushes for 45 yards and two receptions for 11 yards. Jesse Turner also had a solid game, hauling in three receptions for 41 yards. On defense, the Bulldogs had five total sacks; Wimmer, Frank, Kostas Bauck all had one each, while Van Lee and Wyatt Burnett helped contribute on two other team sacks. Tyson Hodges added a handful of crucial tackles on the night.

“We came out a little frazzled, kind of like how we ended the game last week, and then settled down,” head coach Ryan Knowles said. “We started getting some turnovers, putting some pressure on their offense, and that’s what we need to do more of… but when our offense is struggling like this, it can be anticlimactic.”

Sandpoint (0-2) will head to Washington-Grizzly stadium in Missoula to face Raymond High School on Friday, Sept. 8.

Sandpoint 0 0 0 0 – 0

CDA 14 5 0 0 – 19

First quarter

CDA – Owen Harris 4 run, 6:28

CDA – Carson Speelman 70 run, 5:14

Second quarter

CDA – SAFETY, 7:21

CDA – Jayson Cady 26 yard FG, 0:16

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING – SPT, Garcia 5-11, Brwester 9-35, Frank 9-34; CDA, Harris 12-62, Myers 2-11, Speelman 10-130, Symons 6-(-2).

PASSING – SPT, Garcia 2-8-0-21, Buckhout 8-18-0-65; CDA, Symons, 19-30-0-228.

RECEIVING – SPT, Lehman 2-9, Brewster 2-11, Turner 3-41, Frank 2-45; CDA, Robertson 3-35, Booth 4-61, Coey 1-3, Wheeler 2-28, Hagel 2-23, Cady 3-40, Speelman 2-38.