Sandpoint golf sweeps regional titles to earn berths to state

POST FALLS — The Sandpoint golf team got out the brooms on Monday.

The Bulldog boys and girls both claimed 4A Region 1 titles to secure their spots in the state tournament.

It's Sandpoint's first regional sweep since 2016.

For the girls, a regional title and their second straight berth to state seemed like a foregone conclusion all season long. On the other side, the boys knew a regional title wasn't going to come easy.

Sandpoint, Lakeland and Moscow were neck and neck at every tournament during the regular season and separated by only a handful of strokes. That trend continued on Monday at The Links Golf Club.

The Bulldogs edged out the Hawks by seven strokes and Moscow by 16. Head coach Mike Deprez said there was a lot of tension and pressure out on the golf course given what was at stake, and when the boys learned they had won it was pure pandemonium.

"It was an animal house out there," Deprez said. "They were incredibly excited."

Any team could have won the boys title, but Sandpoint just wanted it more.

"It was an incredible team effort," Deprez said. "They all knew what was on the line ... and I'm incredibly happy and exhilarated for those guys, and my adrenaline is pumping and will not stop for the next eight and half days."

Harley Wilks (82) and Dawson Owens (83) captured second and third individually to carry the boys to glory. Darren Bailey tied for fourth with an 85, Jake Samuels posted a 93 and Connor Bird carded a 95.

On the girls side, Sandpoint's golfers swept the top five spots to cruise to the team title. They beat second place Lakeland by 99 strokes.

"I'm incredibly proud of the girls because we've always been trying to create that knowledge of the kind of scores we have to shoot to be competitive to win state and that's kind of what we did today," Deprez said.

Annaby Kanning, the team's No. 4, came out of nowhere to grab medalist honors with a personal best 82.

Deprez said Kanning has been close to breaking out, but he didn't see a round where she shattered her personal best by eight strokes coming.

"She played very good golf ... but that's necessary for us to win state," Deprez said.

CeCe Deprez was close behind with an 83, Camille Neuder had an 85, Hattie Larson shot an 86 and freshman Audrey Sheffler finished with a personal best 97.

Now all four seniors for the girls — CeCe, Neuder, Larson and Kanning — have taken medalist honors at a tournament during their SHS careers.

"That speaks to our depth and balance out there," Deprez said.

The 4A state tournament will take place next Monday and Tuesday at The Links Golf Club.

Deprez is feeling good about where his team is at heading into state.

"Everybody's kind of got their swing going," he said. "Now it's just more about making sure they manage their games well."

The Bulldogs have plenty of familiarity with The Links, and Deprez said course knowledge could help the girls, who are seeking their first state title in school history.

"The girls certainly realize that they took care of business today, but they are clearly aware that we are just getting out of the starting gate and that the real competition is about to start," he said. "Everything has been a warmup in preparation for this upcoming week."

BOYS

TEAM SCORES (winner to state) — 1, Sandpoint 343. 2, Lakeland 350. 3, Moscow 359.

MEDALIST — Bryden Brown, Moscow, 71.

INDIVIDUAL STATE QUALIFIERS (top three to state) — 1, Bryden Brown, Moscow.

SANDPOINT — Harley Wilks 82, Dawson Owens 83, Darren Bailey 85, Connor Bird 95, Jake Samuels 93.

LAKELAND — Aiden Sandlin 86, Brady Hanna 85, Mason Burcham 91, Richie Thomas 88, Kyler Gorton.

MOSCOW — Bryden Brown 71, Ben Mack 93, Taylor Strong 93, Alex Lee 99, Isaac Harmon 97.

GIRLS

TEAM SCORES (winner to state) — 1, Sandpoint 336. 2, Lakeland 435, 3, Moscow 460.

MEDALIST — Annaby Kanning, Sandpoint, 82.

SANDPOINT — CeCe Deprez 83, Hattie Larson 86, Camille Neuder 85, Annaby Kanning 82, Audrey Sheffler 97.

LAKELAND — Kylie Kime 101, Gabby O'Neal 110, Karsyn Miller 120, Jessica Thompson 104, Heather Thompson 128.

MOSCOW — Myah Parsons 104, Mia Berrett, Marissa Lewis 112, Hannah Gregory 133.