Century knocks off Sandpoint in semifinals

BOISE – For the second consecutive night Friday, the Sandpoint girls basketball team put forth a solid effort at the 4A state tournament.

But this time, against a hungry, experienced and top-ranked Century squad, the Bulldogs’ feisty performance wasn’t enough. Century’s backcourt duo of Rian Rawlings and Sarah Holt teamed up to score 34 points and the Diamondbacks used a decisive third-quarter run to pull away for a 60-44 semifinal victory at Timberline High.

“They’re a very good ballclub,” Sandpoint coach Duane Ward said. “They’re big up front. I thought we battled hard on the boards and played pretty good basketball, but when the ball doesn’t go in the hole, it makes things difficult.”

Junior wing Madi Schoening scored 22 points to lead the Bulldogs, who went blow-for-blow with Century in the first half. It was a 25-23 game going into the locker room, but Century took command with an 18-3 third-quarter run.

Schoening and the Bulldogs tried to chip away at the lead in the fourth, but the deficit proved too big to overcome.

“Basketball is a game of runs,” Ward said. “We paid the price in the second half for the shots we missed in the first half. We didn’t have the cushion to withstand their run when they made it.”

Sandpoint senior Lily Martin scored eight points and senior Elani Williams chipped in six. The scrappy Bulldogs battled the much taller Diamondbacks to a virtual stalemate on the boards, but they could not overcome a cold shooting night (31 percent) or 21 turnovers.

Rawlings scored 20 points and Holt added 14 for the Diamondbacks, who advance to face Skyview in today’s 6 p.m. championship game at the Idaho Center in Nampa. Century (21-3) was the tournament favorite coming in, and the Diamondbacks have validated their lofty ranking with two impressive wins.

“We’ve been communicating and working together as a team,” Rawlings said. “We have a lot of (state) experience, and we know what it takes to get it done.”

Century is seeking its first state championship after losing the title game in 2013.

Sandpoint, meanwhile, already has improved upon last year’s two-and-out performance at state. The Bulldogs (14-9) play Rigby (16-8) in the 11 a.m. third-place game today at Timberline, and the chance to bring home some hardware is not lost on Ward’s team.

“I’m proud of the way our team played,” Schoening said. “In the second half, our defense broke down a little bit, but we kept fighting. We’re ready for tomorrow. We want to come out and get that win and take a trophy back home for our community.”

3A

Timberlake 67, Filer 44: Allison Kirby scored 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting and dished out six assists as the Tigers (20-3) claimed a spot in today’s title game with a win over the Wildcats at Skyview High School in Nampa, Idaho.

The game was a rematch of last year’s state championship. Filer beat the Tigers 44-36 to claim the title.

Timberlake led by 12 at the half, then outscored Filer 19-6 in the third to seal the victory.

Keelie Lawler added 20 points for the Tigers, who forced 23 turnovers. Timberlake will play Sugar-Salem in the title game at 3:50 p.m. today at the Ford Idaho Center in Nampa.

Fruitland 51, Priest River 35: MaKenna Little made 11 of 12 free throws and scored 17 points to guide the Grizzlies past the Spartans (16-9) in an elimination game at Skyview High School.

Brooke Teunissen added 16 points for Fruitland, which opened the game on a 12-3 run. Priest River responded in the second quarter, outscoring the Grizzlies 17-11, but Fruitland pulled away for good after halftime.

The Spartans made just 4 of 21 second-half shots, including 1 of 8 3-pointers. Priest River’s Elisa Williams tallied a team-high 12 points and Katlyn Summers pulled down 10 rebounds.

1A D-II

Lakeside 42, Council 40: Lillian Rhea led a balanced attack with 10 points and seven rebounds and the Knights erased a seven-point first-half deficit and stayed alive with a win over the Lumberjacks at Nampa High School.

Lakeside made 7 of 11 free throws in the second half and outscored Council 28-19. The Knights’ Cailyn Dohrman added nine points and Talia Hendrickx dished out five assists.

The Knights will play Nezperce in today’s consolation final.