Bulldogs lead start to finish, four Badgers in double digits

SANDPOINT — Quick scoring from the Bulldogs and 20 points from both Kelsey Cessna and Karli Banks had Sandpoint in the lead from the start to finish as the Bulldogs defeated Bonners Ferry, 69-47, on Tuesday.

Layups, free-throws, three-pointers, and-1’s, 1-1’s, Cessna hit them all Tuesday night. She was 3-3 at the free-throw line and scored 13 points in the first quarter. Whatever shot Sandpoint didn’t make on the first go, the Bulldogs defense was there to clean up.

At the end of the first quarter, Sandpoint led Bonners Ferry 23-11.

What Cessna did in the first quarter, Karli Banks followed up with in the second quarter. Banks scored 11 points, three of which were three-point shots.

“Kelsey had that hot start,” said head coach Will Love. “Then Karli went on fire with those three three’s.”

Every time Sandpoint had the ball, they made it count. The Bulldogs backed up the 20 points they scored in the first quarter with another 26 in the second.

“To put up 46 points in a half especially against a team like Bonners they really did some good things offensively,” Love said.

Heading into halftime, Sandpoint led 46-23.

Things slowed down in the third quarter. The Bulldogs weren’t moving the ball as well and had trouble finishing their shots. Then Badgers took advantage of this and outscored Sandpoint for the first time in the game, 18-12. Seven of the 18 points came from Kaylee Sumpter of Bonners Ferry.

“The third quarter has been a tough one for us,” Love said. “Credit to Bonners Ferry, I knew that they were going to compete for the entire 32 minutes.”

The Bulldogs were up 58-41 heading into the final quarter.

Whether on offense or defense, a Bulldog was there to snag the ball. Daylee Driggs was extremely consistent through each quarter scoring a total of 15 points for Sandpoint.

“I’m pleased with where the offense is heading," Love said. "I don’t think we’ve peaked yet. Defensively we’ve got to clean some things up.”

A few fouls for each team in the fourth but nothing could stop the Bulldogs run. Sandpoint took the win with 69-47.

Sandpoint 20 26 12 11 — 69

Bonners Ferry 11 12 18 6 — 47

SANDPOINT — K. Cessna 20, Demi Driggs 0, Daylee Driggs 15, P. Cessna 0, Richardson 5, Tuinstra 2, Strock 7, Laybourne 0, Banks 20.

BONNERS FERRY — Petesch 2, Villaluz 4, Kimball 6, Petersen 0, Blackmore 8, Abubakari 13, Sumpter 12, Bayer 2.

The Bonners Ferry versus Spokane's East Valley game was canceled Saturday, Dec. 10 due to weather.

Four Badgers earn double digits against Wildcats

On Dec. 9, four Badger girl basketball players scored double digits against the Kellogg Wildcats.

Last time these two teams met, the Badgers went on a run in the second quarter with a full court press.

“I think they were ready for this game,” said Bonners Ferry head coach Travis Hinthorn. “This time it was the pressure of Mia Blackmore and Kara Villazula on top of our zone that helped us with our second quarter run.”

Macy Jerome for Kellogg was dominant on the court and scored 23 points.

Asha Abubakari continued to lead the Badgers in scoring with 18 points, closely followed by Mia Blackmore with 16.

Markynn Pluid racked up free throws and made five of her eight free throws in the fourth, adding a total of 11 points for the Badgers. Braylyn Bayer drowned some threes and scored 10 points.

Kara Villaluz was just shy of scoring double digits, but filled the state sheets with eight assists and six steals.

“Kara made some great passes in transition,” Hinthorn said.

Looking forward Hinthorn said the Badgers need to continue to improve on a couple things defensively. At Friday’s contest, the team was down a couple players, but others stepped up, he said.

The game against East Valley scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 10 was canceled due to weather. The Badgers are 5-3 overall and 0-1 in conference after falling to Timberlake on Dec. 2.

Bonners Ferry — 13 26 15 14 — 68

Kellogg — 12 11 13 15 — 51

Bonners Ferry: Petesch 0, Villazula 8, Pluid 11, Blackmore 16, Abubakari 18, B. Bayer 10, Sumpter 5, Riley Kimball 0.

Kellogg: Macy Jerome 23, Dara Schilleriff 4, Emily Coe 11, Alex Karst 6, Dani Henrikson 7, Brianna Clapper 0, Makaila Groth 0, Mya Reynoldson 0, Aubree Groth 0, Brooke Benning 0, Kelsie Dechand 0, Haylee Potts 0, Audrey Hart 0.