GIRLS

Sandpoint 51, Bishop Kelly 28

MERIDIAN — It was all Sandpoint from the very start.

Junior Brecken Mire splashed three 3-pointers and amassed a game-high 25 points (9-15, FG, 4-7 FT), a game-high eight rebounds, and dished out three assists, junior Livia Driggs hit a 3-pointer (5-12 FG, 2-2 FT) of her own as she recorded 13 points, four rebounds, three assists and a game-high five steals, and the No. 2 Lady Bulldogs used their 2-2-1 full-court press to stifle the No. 7 Lady Knights early as they picked up a 5A State Championship tournament first round win on Thursday night at Mountain View High. 

Junior Jordyn Tomco also buried a 3-pointer and had nine points and two steals, sophomore Willow Betz chipped in four points, five rebounds and a pair of blocks, and junior Carly Laybourne pulled down five boards for Sandpoint, which led 33-13 at intermission.

Sandpoint High head coach Madi Schoening said her team's defense played a key role in the win.

"Our defense typically creates our best offense," coach Schoening said of her team, which forced 23 turnovers, surpassing their goal of 20-plus. "Crazy we only had four scorers, but it was a well-rounded game, and we were able to get a bunch of kids in for some good experience — a great first day."

Junior Summer Loutzenhiser grabbed two steals of her own for Sandpoint, which advanced to the state semifinals and improved 20-5 with the victory.

"A big goal this year has been getting past this first game and getting to the Ford Idaho Center, so to be able to do that has been really exciting," coach Schoening said. "It's fun to take a team down here that wants this so bad and is playing for each other. They've earned it, but the job's not done yet."

Reagan Williams had eight points and six rebounds, Lauren Park seven points and four rebounds for Bishop Kelly, which came into the game with a record of 15-7 after winning the District 3 Southern Idaho Conference.

Bishop Kelly 6 7 7 8 — 28

Sandpoint 16 17 11 7 — 51

PTS: SPT — Mire 25, L. Driggs 13, Tomco 9, Betz 4. BK — Williams 8, Park 7, Baerlocher 5, Glynn 4, McCarthy 4.

REB: SPT — Mire 8, Betz 5, Laybourne 5, L. Driggs 4, Tomco 2, Butler 2, Todd-Murray 1, Laing 1. BK — Williams 6, McCarthy 5, Park 4, Stiffler 3, Klass 1, Wright 1, Baerlocher 1, Glynn 1, Welp 1.

AST: SPT — L. Driggs 3, Mire 3, Betz 1. BK — Baerlocher 2, McCarthy 2.

STL: SPT — L. Driggs 5, Tomco 2, Loutzenhiser 2, Betz 1, Laybourne 1, Laing 1. BK — Baerlocher 2, Klass 1, Williams 1, McCarthy 1.

BLK: SPT — Betz 2. BK — None.

Sandpoint 53, Blackfoot 50

NAMPA — What more could you ask for from the NCAA Division II University of Alaska Anchorage commit.

Junior Jordyn Tomco caught fire for a game-high 32 points (11-18 FG, 7-9 FT), including three 3-pointers, and produced four rebounds and a team-high three steals, junior Brecken Mire (5-10 FG, 4-6 FT) hit a pair of triples and put together another steady effort of 16 points, a team-high seven rebounds and three assists, and the No. 2 Lady Bulldogs punched their ticket to the 5A State Championship game after staving off the No. 3 Lady Broncos for a three-point win in Friday afternoon's semifinals matchup at the Ford Idaho Center.

Trailing 23-21 heading into the locker room, Tomco, who had 19 of her 32 points in the second half, banked in one of her treys late in the third quarter to give the Lady Bulldogs a 34-28 lead. Mire then lined up a 3-pointer for a 37-30 advantage, and shortly after, the 5-foot-10-inch junior guard that is Tomco hit another shot from way downtown to cap off a 20-7 third-scoring effort that put Sandpoint in front 41-30 heading into the final frame.

"They’re an incredible, dynamic duo,” Sandpoint High first-year head coach Madi Schoening said of Mire and Tomco. “They play off each other and step up when they need to. They really took over with their captain leadership and held each other accountable and the team accountable. We talked about emptying the gas tank, and we did that today.”

Blackfoot made a push late, outscoring Sandpoint 20-12 in the final quarter, but Tomco sunk two crucial free throws to make it a 52-48 game with roughly 10 seconds to go. The Lady Bulldogs then made a defensive stop late to secure the victory.

"We talked about it in the last timeout that we just needed one stop and they were going to have to foul us,” coach Schoening said. “We were going to make it hard for them to get anything going. We missed one, and they got a half-court shot off, but we made it interesting.”

The Lady Broncos, led by 15 points and eight rebounds from Jaci Capson and 12 points from Oakley Talbot, will play in the third-place game today at 11 a.m. (PST).

Sandpoint went 0-2 at state last year. The Lady Bulldogs won their first state title in 2023, when Tomco was in eighth grade and Schoening was in her second year as an assistant coach with the program.

“I watched it at my house, and we were just as hyped as the team was,” Tomco said of the 2023 state title game in which Sandpoint defeated Shelley by a score of 69-65. “It’s pretty surreal to be in the title game. We’ve played together for so many years. (Will) Love has set a good program, and Madi has taken over. We’re a big family and I wouldn’t want to do this with anyone else.”

This time, No. 2 Sandpoint (21-5) will take on No. 4 Pocatello (18-7), which upset No. 1 Lakeland (19-5) by a score of 52-45 in their semifinals matchup on Friday morning, in the state title game. The Lady Thunder, winners of the District 5 Southeast Idaho Conference, defeated No. 5 Jerome by a score of 58-46 in their opener. They are led by Gonzaga University commit Abby Lusk, who had 26 points, 12 rebounds, four steals and two blocks in the win over the Lady Hawks.

“Abby Lusk is a player we’re going to have to key in on,” Schoening said. “They play hard, and they’re really strong and physical. We’ll need to be able to knock down some outside shots.”

Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. (PST) on Saturday night at the Ford Idaho Center. The game will be streamed live on NFHS and will be broadcast on Idahosports.com.

Blackfoot 13 10 7 20 — 50

Sandpoint 12 9 20 12 — 53

PTS: SPT — Tomco 32, Mire 16, Laybourne 3, L. Driggs 1, Laing 1. BFT — Capson 15, Talbot 12, Jackman 6, Christiansen 6, Ball 6, Arave 5.

REB: SPT — Mire 7, Laing 5, Tomco 4, L. Driggs 3, Butler 2, Laybourne 1, M. Driggs 1, Betz 1. BFT — Capson 8, Ball 5, Arave 5, Talbot 4, Jackman 3, Christiansen 3, Moss 1.

AST: SPT — L. Driggs 4, Mire 3, Tomco 1, Betz 1. BFT — Jackman 3, Ball 3, Christiansen 2, Martin 2, Capson 1, Arave 1.

STL: SPT — Tomco 3, Laing 1, Butler 1, Betz 1. BFT — Jackman 2, Martin 1, Capson 1, Christansen 1, Ball 1, Arave 1.

BLK: SPT — Betz 1. BFT — Christiansen 1.

BOYS

Priest River 58, Sandpoint JV 47

PRIEST RIVER — Senior Ian Lamanna compiled 13 of his game-high 19 points in the second half, including three 3-pointers, and added a team-high seven assists and a team-high four steals to the stat sheet, senior Brady Hatten recorded eight of his 13 points in the first quarter and pulled down nine rebounds, and the Spartans took down the Bulldogs' junior varsity team in their regular season finale on Thursday night at Priest River High.

Sophomore Madden Redinger also drained three 3-pointers on his way to a line of 15 points, three assists and two steals and fellow sophomore Jacob Best added five points and hauled in nine rebounds of his own for Priest River, which 26-16 at halftime.

Senior Dawson Strange had five points, including a 3-pointer, and three rebounds, junior Borden Collins collected four rebounds, and senior Lucas Mathews tallied five rebounds, two assists, and a pair of blocks in the victory for No. 4 Priest River (6-13), which will turn their attention towards No. 1 St. Maries (16-3). The two teams will kick off the first round of 3A District 1-2 tournament action on Monday at 6 p.m. at St. Maries High.

Sandpoint JV 7 9 13 18 — 47

Priest River 14 12 15 17 — 58

PTS: PR — Lamanna 19, Redinger 15, Hatten 13, Best 5, Strange 5, Simcox 1.

REB: PR — Hatten 9, Best 9, Mathews 5, Collins 4, Strange 3, Lamanna 2, Redinger 2, Simcox 2.

AST: PR — Lamanna 7, Redinger 3, Mathews 2, Collins 1.

STL: PR — Lamanna 4, Redinger 2, Mathews 1, Collins 1.

BLK: PR — Mathews 2, Redinger 1, Best 1, Hatten 1.

    Sandpoint High senior Jasmin Laing (2) fights off Bishop Kelly's Lauren Park (1) and Reagan Williams (23) for a rebound during the Lady Bulldogs' 51-28 win over the Lady Knights on Thursday night in the first round of the 5A State Championship tournament.