Auggie Lehman hit a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the seventh inning during the nightcap of Sandpoint’s sweep of 4A Inland Empire League opponent Lakeland.

The Bulldogs won the opener of the doubleheader 12-2 and the second game 3-2.

“I envisioned taking the ball the other way and driving in the run,” Lehman said “It felt good to go out and get it done.”

In the bottom of the sixth inning freshman Drew Lehman stepped into the batter's box and drove home Colin Roos with a single down the right field line to tie the game.

Following its 10-run victory in the opener, Sandpoint came out with some momentum, scoring the first run of the contest.

Blake Sherrill reached home following an Auggie Lehman sacrifice fly, giving the Bulldogs the 1-0 edge.

In the third, Lakeland (3-16, 2-13) began to warm up. Sean Tierney hit a line drive triple into right field, which scored Payden Wysong.

Tierney reached home during the next at-bat, which gave the Hawks a 2-1 lead.

The Bulldogs defense managed to keep the Hawks at bay for the remainder of the contest.

Sandpoint pitcher Jack Ringer pitched a complete game giving up two runs on five hits, striking out nine.

“He was outstanding,” Tigert said. “(Jack) Ringer has been a starting pitcher his entire life. Being used this year primarily out of the pen has been an adjustment for him, but he just wants to help the team. For him to be able to start today and shove was awesome. We were going to throw him in the eighth, too.”

Ringer struck out one during Lakeland’s final stand at the plate. The other two outs were handled by Austin Dillon at third base.

Dillon fielded two straight ground balls from third and fired it right into the glove of first baseman Ethan Butler.

Dillon also took care of pitching duties during the opener. He gave up two runs on four hits and struck out five.

“He was outstanding for us on the bump today,” Tigert said. “We can always rely on him to go out there and give us a solid performance. He’s a huge addition to the program. I’m so happy to have him.”

The Bulldogs were holding on to a 5-0 lead heading into the top of the fifth inning.

Lakeland would load the bases after two singles and a Sandpoint error.

The Hawks brought home two runners after two straight walks which cut Sandpoint’s lead 6-2.

This has been eerily familiar territory for the Bulldogs this season. Dillon ended the inning by striking out Tanner Vandever.

As momentum started to tip in favor of Lakeland, Sandpoint went up to bat and scored six runs to force the 10-run rule.

“When it gets going it’s contagious,” Tigert said. “You’re three at bats away from anything. That’s where things start to speed up. It got contagious and they started putting the ball in play.”

Rain was dumping from the sky before the first pitch of the opener and it continued well into the nightcap.

“That’s a game I hope they remember for the rest of their lives,” Tigert said. “It was a lot of fun battling In the pouring rain.”

In the Bulldogs’ first 10 games, they were 2-8. They finished out the season 6-4.

“This means everything, we completely turned our season around,” Lehman said. “Now we’re tacking on wins and we feel better than ever and it’s great.”

This doubleheader victory over Lakeland was without a doubt its most important of the season. With the sweep, the Bulldogs advance to the 4A Region 1 best-of-3 series.

Sandpoint will face the winner of Moscow and Lakeland on Tuesday at Memorial Field for the first game of the series.

FIRST GAME

LAKELAND 000 020 x — 2 4 1

SANDPOINT 213 006 x — 12 9 2

Cameron Harris, Sean Tierney (5) and Jace Cooksey. Austin Dillion and Auggie Lehman.

HITS: LKL — Ellwood, Pemberton, Cooksey 2. SPT — Zimmerman, A. Lehman 2, Dillon 2, Barlow, Mellander, D. Lehman 2. 3B — Zimmerman.

SECOND GAME

LAKELAND 002 000 0 — 2 5 0

SANDPOINT 100 001 1 — 3 9 1

Payden Wysong, Garrett Love (7), and Unknown. Jack Ringer and Auggie Lehman.

HITS: LKL — Tierney, Love, Vandever, Ellwood 2. SPT — Sherrill, MacDonald, Zimmerman, A. Lehman 2, Mellander, D. Lehman. 3B — Tierney.