Sandpoint, UI Enjoy Sports Fete Lawrence, Bruder, Nieman Among Top Winners At Banquet
Sandpoint High and the University of Idaho men’s track team cleaned up at the 36th annual North Idaho Sports Banquet Saturday night.
Awards, that is.
Sandpoint captured three North Idaho awards and the loudest ovations during ceremonies at the Coeur d’Alene Inn.
Unbeaten wrestler Jared Lawrence was voted top male athlete, Satini Puailoa was named coach of the year and Puailoa’s state-champion football team claimed male team honors.
“No, Jared didn’t gain weight,” joked Sandpoint principal A.C. Woolnough, accepting on Lawrence’s behalf.
Woolnough illustrated Lawrence’s modesty with a story. “Jared was named outstanding wrestler at a national tournament last week in Pittsburgh and he didn’t even bother telling his folks.”
Idaho track won three awards in State categories, keeping coach Mike Keller busy. For several minutes, Keller was rarely in his seat as he returned to the podium to collect trophies or present an award.
UI’s Frank Bruder was selected male athlete of the year, Keller was tabbed top coach and the Big West Conference champs took honors for best team.
“Frank struggled academically just to get into Idaho,” Keller said of Bruder, last year’s runner-up in the NCAA steeplechase. “Last year he was named academic All-American with a 3.78 GPA.”
Sandpoint and UI were far from done. Former Bulldogs standout Alli Nieman, a UI sophomore who was all-Big West basketball this season, was voted state female athlete of the year.
“Driving down here with my parents we were trying to think of something to say,” Nieman said. “My parents thought of some odd kinds of things. When I walked up here, the only thing I could think of was something Coach (Julie) Holt always said: ‘Go Vandals.”’
It was a nice evening for another long-time area family. Former North Idaho College men’s basketball coach Rolly Williams received the Gar Anderson Memorial Award as Outstanding Sportsman.
Lindsay Herbert, Williams’ granddaughter, collected the North Idaho female athlete award.
Others honored were Prairie basketball, North Idaho female team; Moscow’s Len Labine, booster; and ex-Vandal Mark Schlereth, a starter for the Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos, state pro athlete of the year.
Former Gonzaga men’s basketball coach Dan Fitzgerald was the featured speaker.
The Idaho Athletic Hall of Fame welcomed four new members: Tom Bell, May Low Gahrenwald Acuff, Gordon Brown and Edward “Bud” Riley, a former Vandal football player and coach who had a sizable fan club at Saturday’s event.
, DataTimes MEMO: Changed in Spokane edition.