SANDPOINT — A slow start from the Sandpoint Bulldogs proved damning against the Mead Panthers as they fell 4-0 on Thursday night at War Memorial Field. 

The Panthers got the scoring started early, notching three of their four goals in the first 20 minutes of action. Sandpoint head coach Alan Brinkmeier said Mead brought a different formation in the midfield that the Bulldogs struggled to adapt to in the first half and made great runs off the ball to create quality chances. 

“Coming off the [University High] game, we kind of played on our heels, played timid and we gave Mead a lot of respect in the midfield,” Brinkmeier said. “I would say 90% of the time they were first to the ball, and if we can’t win the ball or get to it first, we’re going to be in trouble.” 

After the halftime break, Brinkmeier made the needed adjustments with his team, allowing them to gather momentum and generate offense, but they struggled to push the ball past Mead’s goalkeeper. Brinkmeier said that the team was dealing with some injuries, and he opted to pull some players to protect them before the team’s league matchup with Lewiston on Saturday. 

This led the team to reshuffle players, having several play out of position for the latter half of the contest. Mead took advantage of that and scored their fourth goal in the 57th minute. 

“When we’re not as comfortable in the midfield, it opens up that space even more,” Brinkmeier said. “I think we did better organizationally, but I think we still had those gaps that we needed to fill.” 

With the loss, the Bulldogs fell to 3-5 overall but remain 2-1 in the 6A/5A Inland Empire League. Sandpoint travels to Lewiston, which is 1-1-1 in league play, on Saturday for a pivotal rebound matchup. The Golden Bengals are currently on a four-game losing streak and are 1-5-1 overall. 

Brinkmeier said the team is going to focus on rebuilding their confidence, possession passing and first touches ahead of the Lewiston matchup. 

“I’m hoping that they go into Saturday with confidence,” Brinkmeier said. “We should feel like we have a good opportunity to go down to Lewiston and get a good result.” 

Today's game between the Golden Bengals and Bulldogs will be played at 12 p.m. in Lewiston.