COEUR d’ALENE — In what was the first league tiebreaker Sandpoint competed in since 2002, it was Lewiston that came out on top, Lakeland second, and the Bulldogs third in the Kansas City-style mini game held Monday night at Coeur d'Alene High's Viking Field to determine a 5A Inland Empire League champion.

The tiebreaker games were similar to a college-level overtime format, where each team gets a possession starting at the 25-yard line. Where it differs is that if teams were still tied after one possession, the second possession would start from the 10-yard line and teams must go for a two-point conversion following a touchdown. Of course, the tiebreaker was played in double-elimination format.

In the first game of the night, Sandpoint High junior Brock Yarbrough kicked a 28-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead. On Lewiston's possession, Mason Way connected with Michael Earl on a 17-yard pass on 4th-and-12. Way scored from nine yards out on the next play to lift the Bengals over Sandpoint.

Lewiston then defeated Lakeland in the second game of the night after Austin Topp scored on a 10-yard touchdown run, and the Bengal defense stopped the Hawks on 4th-and-goal. Lakeland then eliminated Sandpoint after Griffin Tamagni scored on a 1-yard run to give the Hawks a 7-0 lead. Sandpoint fumbled the ball on the 15-yard line and Lakeland recovered to end the loser-out game.

Lakeland forced a deciding game on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Peyton Hillman to Jace Taylor for a 6-3 win after Lewiston went first on offense, getting a 36-yard field goal by Michael Earl.

In the deciding "game" of the tiebreaker, Tamagni scored on a 5-yard touchdown run to give the Hawks a 7-0 lead. Lewiston countered with a 10-yard scoring run by quarterback Mason Way. After a personal foul moved the PAT from the 3-yard line to the 1-yard line, Lewiston went for two, and Way converted on a run — barely — to give the Bengals (3-6) the win.

Lewiston earned the league's automatic berth to the 16-team state playoffs. Lakeland and Sandpoint also earned at-large playoff berths, based on MaxPreps rankings. All three were guaranteed playoff berths coming into Monday; at stake was a home game in the first round.

Lakeland defeated Lewiston 42-17 in the regular season finale for both Friday, leaving all three teams in the 5A IEL tied at 1-1 after Lewiston beat Sandpoint on Oct. 10 in Lewiston. Sandpoint defeated Lakeland 31-27 at War Memorial Field on Oct. 17.

Lakeland, ranked fifth by MaxPreps, dropped to the ninth seed, and will visit eighth-seeded Lewiston, ranked 14th by MaxPreps, in a first-round game at 7 p.m. at the PIFCU Sports Complex in Lewiston on Friday. Sandpoint (6-2), ranked seventh, is the 11th seed, and will travel to sixth-seeded Minico (6-3) of Rupert for its opener.