PREP GIRLS SOCCER: Sandpoint wins in OT to clinch state bid on home turf

5A

SANDPOINT — It was a miracle in itself that junior Rae Olsen was on the field for the seventh-ranked Sandpoint Bulldogs in their win-or-go-home state 5A play-in game against ninth-ranked Idaho Falls on Saturday. 

Olsen has been battling a shoulder injury, Sandpoint coach Alan Brinkmeier said, but gritted it out for her team, and the Bulldogs are certainly glad she did. Olsen scored Sandpoint’s first goal in the second half to even the game at 1-1, before she fired a cross into the box that found the foot of Jordyn Tomco in the second half of overtime.  

Tomco promptly sent the ball into the back of the net in the 93rd minute to seal a 2-1 comeback victory and send the Bulldogs to the state tournament. 

“We’ve been working on that all season, getting around in the corner and squaring it up to give our players a chance to finish it,” Brinkmeier said of Olsen’s cross. “To see that be the winner, something we’ve worked on all season, it’s unimaginable.” 

Sandpoint (10-7-1) struggled to begin its state play-in game, with Idaho Falls (10-9-1) dominating the entire first half. Idaho Falls got on the board first after 20 minutes of constant pressure with junior Kaia Orgill narrowly beating Sandpoint’s goalkeeper Izzy Stark with a shot into the right side of the goal. 

Stark took a few big hits in the first half of what became a very physical game but came through in the closing moments of the game to help her team extend its season. 

“She battled all the way through that first half of just pain and then kept her composure and calmness. I think that’s what you need on that backline, composure from your goalkeeper,” Brinkmeier said. “I was impressed that she could come back from the district damages to keep her going.” 

Following Orgill’s goal, Idaho Falls kept its foot on the gas until halftime as Sandpoint struggled to break through the Tigers' back line. 

Brinkmeier’s words to his team at halftime were clearly heard as Sandpoint started the second half on the attack, looking like a completely different team than its first half selves. It was only three minutes out of the break until Olsen found the back of the net on a deflection goal to equalize the game at 1-1. 

“When they stepped onto the field, you could just tell that they wanted it,” Brinkmeier said. “For Rae to get the deflection goal, she’s been on a scoring drought for a while so it’s great to see ... from back to front our team battled.” 

Both teams clicked into desperation mode searching for a goal but couldn’t find one in the rest of regulation or the first half of overtime. Sandpoint came out swinging in the second overtime before Tomco’s golden goal sealed their victory. 

The Bulldogs will play Hillcrest in the first round of the 5A state tournament, hosted in Ponderay at The Field of Dreams, on Thursday at 9:30 a.m.  

First half — 1, IF, Kaia Orgill (unassisted), 20:00. Second half — 2, Spt, Rae Olsen (Harper Overland), 43:00. Overtime — 3, SPT, Jordyn Tomco (Olsen), 93:00. 

Shots on goal — IF 6, Spt 6. 

Saves — IF, unknown 4; Spt, Izzy Stark 5.  

6A

Coeur d'Alene 1

Madison 0 (OT)

REXBURG — She’s a freshman, and she punched the Vikings' ticket to state for the first time in seven seasons. 

Freshman Brightyn Gatten headed a corner kick to the near post past the Madison goalkeeper to the far post 6 minutes into overtime, sending the Vikings past the Bobcats in a state 6A play-in match at Madison High. 

Coeur d’Alene (10-5), ranked fifth by MaxPreps, which is used to seed the state tournament, advances to state for the first time since 2019 at Bonneville High in Idaho Falls starting Thursday. 

“Grier (Scott) played a ball to Brightyn and she played a great ball past the keeper,” Coeur d’Alene coach Andy Vredenburg said. “It was a great goal.” 

Coeur d’Alene had 17 shots on goal, compared to two for Madison. 

“It was a long bus ride (Friday) and we didn’t have our best day,” Vredenburg said of the roughly 485-mile trip one-way. “But the girls kept fighting. It was a struggle, but we knew if we kept going, we’d get something into the back of the net. And Brightyn showed up big for us.” 

Madison, ranked 12th, was guaranteed a home play-in match. The Bobcats finished 9-9-2. 

First half — none. Second half — none. Overtime — 1, Cd’A, Brightyn Gatten (Grier Scott), 86:00. 

Shots on goal — Cd’A 17, Mad 2. 

Saves — Cd’A, Maddie Olivier 2; Mad, Olivia Bradfield 15. 

4A

McCall-Donnelly 2 

Cd’A Charter 1 

McCALL — For the first time since their inaugural season of 2012, the Panthers will miss the state tournament after falling to the fifth-ranked Vandals in a state 4A play-in match at McCall-Donnelly High. 

Coeur d’Alene Charter, ranked 12th by MaxPreps, finished 13-6-1. 

McCall-Donnelly (12-2-1) advances to state starting Thursday at Twin Falls High.