5A Classification

Football

Timber-live and well

The Wolves’ great nightmare is finally over. After 12 consecutive losses, Timberline finally notched one for the win column in a miraculous comeback over Meridian. The 1-2 Timberwolves were staring down the barrel of a 25-6 deficit before rattling off 20 unanswered. Quarterback Andy Peters nailed a touchdown pass to Nicolas Cabellero in the final minutes before bombing an 81-yard score with 45 seconds left on the clock. Another 21-yard strike at the whistle put the Timberwolves over the edge.

What a view

Speaking of comebacks, the Mountain View Mavericks looked dead in the water in the first half of their game against Capital. But what started as two scoreless quarters turned into an offensive clinic, with Mountain View’s next two scores coming from a 79-yard Leyton Smith run and an 85-yard pass from Colby Peugh to Jake Ferris to tie the game. And with a little more than two minutes left, Peugh found Ferris again for 15 yards and the lead.

Grab a Prka, it’s raining touchdowns

When comparing the quarterbacks of the Coeur d’Alene, Mead game, it’s hard to believe the score was even that close. The Vikings’ 20-point victory came on the back of quarterback Jack Prka, who threw for 427 yards and three touchdowns.

Highland goes head first

The Rams of Highland blew past Twin Falls in their home opener in Holt Arena, a crucial win as three of the four teams in the 5-6 Conference sit at 2-1. The game essentially ended at halftime, with the Rams scoring on every possession in the first half, taking a 24-7 lead. Kaleb Demuzio led the Ram offense with 101 yards on 12 carries, but quarterback Easton Durham still leads the team in yards on the ground this season.

Thundering finish

A wild finish at Thunder Ridge saw a combined 82 points between the Titans and Tigers. Winless Idaho Falls looked to be on the cusp of an upset, with Spencer Moore giving his team the lead late in the third quarter. But Thunder Ridge stormed back to score 28 unanswered points, led by quarterback Tao Johnson. The sophomore gun slinger hit two receivers for touchdowns in the third quarter. The Titans then relied on running back Kaysen Isom, who scored three times in the fourth, first tying the score at 34 and then putting Thunder Ridge up by 14 to end the game.

Boys Soccer

Building an empire

The Inland Empire conference is on a tear defensively. Against the top three teams — Lake City, Post Falls and Coeur d’Alene — opponents have scored just three goals. The Vikings remain perfect on the season, with two shutouts to their name against Sandpoint and Lakeland.

Girls Soccer

Timberline’s  streak

While Northern Idaho has defense locked up in boys soccer, Timberline so far has one of the best backlines in 5A this season. Through six matches, the Wolves have allowed no goals, and have gone scoreless themselves twice in slew of defensive battles.

4A Classification

Football

Game of the Century

At one point Friday night, Pocatello led Century 24-7. Holt Arena might as well have been in the process of closing down for the night. But an electric fourth quarter changed everything, and the Diamondbacks scored 19 unanswered to sneak by their conference rivals. Jovan Sowell sparked the comeback on a 77-yard punt return. Sowell then helped the offense find its stride, catching a 32-yard touchdown pass from Nathan Manning. Manning then found Bruin Fleishmann for 30 yards and Drew Gunter for 66, giving Century a 2-point lead that would withstand Pocatello’s missed last-second field goal.

Meanwhile, Century’s Levi Bates left the field on a stretcher and was sent to the hospital after citing tingling in his arm and severe neck pain. But Head Coach Travis Hobson told the Idaho State Journal Bates left the hospital the next morning and should be fine.

Kavemen krash to the top

After starting the season unranked, Kuna has steamrolled its way through its first three games, holding on to its No. 1 spot in the Southern Idaho Conference with a 57-21 win over Ridgevue. Quarterback Sean Austin put on yet another offensive clinic, hitting his longest touchdown pass of the night from 77 yards out and — even more impressively — his shortest from 25.

BK back in business

A 20-point loss in the season opener might could have put a damper on the Knights’ highly anticipated season. But Bishop Kelly showed Friday night why it should still be feared in the SIC, with a 40-8 wallop of Columbia. Running back Jackson Huskey ended the night with two touchdowns and 78 yards, while receiver Keegan Croteau snagged another three scores, one of which on defense after a fumble recovery taken to the house.

Rivalry weekend starts early

For 15 games, Burley has lost out in the annual rivalry between the Bobcats and Minico Spartans, and Friday proved no different, with Minico blowing out Burley 49-9. 

Missed opportunity for Moscow

It looked like a promising start to the season for the Bears, as Moscow flattened Grangeville 41-0 just two weeks ago. But since the memorable blowout, the Bears have fallen flat themselves, highlighted by a 46-36 loss to 3A Timberlake in Week 3.

Boys Soccer

Clash of the Titans

The match lived up to the hype, as two unbeaten SIC teams put it all on the line for a spot at the top. Caldwell eventually prevailed 3-2 over Emmett, cementing its lead in the conference and ultimately sparking a two-match slide for the Huskies, who lost to Ridgevue 5-3 just two days later.

Girls Soccer

Twin to win

Since tying with Highland 3-3 back in August to start the season, the Twin Falls offense has been an absolute menace through the first half of the season. Not once have the Tigers scored less than five points, and outside of a 5-2 win over Wood River, the teams has outscored opponents by at least six points through seven matches, highlighted by a 13-0 blowout of Burley last week.

Century honors their own

On the 18th anniversary of 9/11, Century High School paid tribute to two graduates killed in combat while serving for the United State Military. The ceremony took place before Century’s matchup with Jerome, in which the Diamondbacks escaped with a last-second goal by Allison McKinlay.

3A Classification

Football

Unsensational Senators

Unranked Weiser made a strong case for itself in the 3A rankings, knocking off No. 3 Gooding 45-42. The Senators held their own for most of the game, but a touchdown pass from Brett Spencer to Bryce Crimin put the Wolverines on top 25-21. Senator quarterback and Eastern Washington commit Shane Jennings put the team on his back, setting a school record for passing yards with 465 and five touchdowns.

And while Gooding stayed competitive for most of the second halft, Spencer’s four touchdowns on the night proved too much for the Senator defense. Weiser (3-0) now ties with Homedale for first place in the Snake River Valley Conference.

Not so sweet

Out-of-state matchups are always hard to predict, but with Sugar-Salem’s 13-game winning streak, it was hard to foresee the Diggers losing out to anyone. But the Wyoming 3A defending State champions snapped Sugar’s streak with ease, as Star Valley defeated the Diggers 24-7. Running back Hadley Miller saved Sugar from a shutout, finishing a 30-yard Digger drive with a 7-yard touchdown. The lack of a passing attack throttled the Digger offense for most of the game, with quarterback Tanner Harris completing just seven passes for 54 yards on 20 attempts.

2A upset

Marsh Valley lost its competitive edge in the South East Idaho conference, falling to 2A West Side 40-8. Four turnovers by the Eagle stifled any chance at offensive momentum, while Pirate Cage Brokens scampered for three touchdowns to help his team score 20 points in just the second quarter.

Boys Soccer

St. Maries escapes another loss

A rough season for the Lumberjacks got a little easier over the weekend, as St. Maries and Bonners Ferry ended their match with a 0-0 draw. While the Lumberjacks didn’t add to their win total, it did mark the first time since 2001 that the Lumberjacks have not lost to their conference rivals, a losing streak that has lasted as long as many St. Maries players have been alive.

Goalkeeper Greyson Sands recorded six saves on 10 shots on goal, helping his team snap the historic slide.

Girls Soccer

McCall-Donnelly wins five straight

The Vandals kept their undefeated streak alive during the week with three straight wins over Weiser, Payette and Grangeville, all at home. Besides a 1-1 draw with Payette earlier in the month, McCall-Donnelly has yet to face a team it couldn’t beat, outscoring opponents 38-20.

2A Classification

Football

Declo’s finest headed to Aggies

Keegan Duncan, a former Declo star and potential Boise State Bronco, underwent surgery to repair a torn ACL Wednesday, then quickly announced he would be transferring to Utah State, rehabbing his injury for the rest of 2019 before seeing the field again in 2020.

Duncan earned the title of 2A State Player of the Year for his efforts as Declo’s standout running back and let the Hornets to two state titles.

Two in a row for Huskies

No. 2 North Fremont padded its undefeated season by defeating Aberdeen 44-8. Now with back-to-back wins over the Tigers under their belt, the Huskies look to keep the ball rolling with a matchup against 0-2 Soda Springs scheduled for next week.

Fruits of their labor

Cole Valley Christian pulled off a huge upset against 3A Fruitland 26-14. Previously unranked, the undefeated Chargers will look to sneak their way into the top 5 with an undefeated season on their resume.

A little goes a long way

McCall-Donnelly’s Pete Knudson only completed seven passes, but it turns out he didn’t need much else in the Vandals’ 68-0 shutout against Dayton-Waitsburg. On those seven completions, Knudson was the poster boy for efficiency, notching 298 yards and five touchdowns.

1ADI Classification 

Running wild

Wilder has established the ground game almost better than anyone in the 1ADI, with a running back committee on display in the Wildcats’ 52-24 win over Salmon River. 474 of Wilder’s 484 yards came on the ground, with four different players scoring touchdowns. Cody Walker and Brandon Aguilera both recorded two scores apiece.

Best of both worlds

The co-op experiment of Lost Rivers is off to a great start in 2019. Through two games, the Pirates have scored a combined 98 points, compared to their opponents only notching 20. Lost Rivers should improve to 3-0 next weekend with a matchup against 2-1 Glenns Ferry on the schedule.

Season high for Prairie

The No. 3 Pirates improved to 2-0 Friday after dropping 78 points against Troy. Both teams entered the contest undefeated, but it was Prairie who left relatively unscathed on their way to a 3-0 record. The loss also marked the first time this season the Trojans have not scored more than 50 points.

1ADII Classification

Lopsided start

Mullan has dominated the competition this season, scoring 52, 74 and 52 points in its first three games. Coupled with a defense that’s allowed just 28 points in as many contests, the Tigers should have an easy time taking the North Star League.

Gem State

North Gem rolled past Challis 50-8 in a non-conference matchup, elevating the Cowboys to 2-1. A 22-8 halftime lead was all North Gem needed to hang on for the remaining two quarters, highlighted by an 80-yard touchdown pass hauled in by Brett Freeman. Quarterback Michael Barfuss led the stat line with 159 yards on the ground and another 161 through the air.

Lighthouse lighting it up

The Lions shutout Carey 36-0, capping off a three-game tear through the regular season. Lighthouse has outscored opponents 152-30. Next up, the Lions face Hagerman.