HUMBOLDT — The Humboldt Cubs waylaid the Cherryvale Chargers Thursday night with their dominating 54-12 win in the opening round of the Class 2A playoffs.
Humboldt (8-1) used eight touchdowns, including a Sam Hull punt return touchdown, as well as a couple of interceptions from Mason Sterling and Asher Hart to seal the win.
“We’re still getting better and we want to continue this time of year,” Humboldt head coach Logan Wyrick said. “It’s always the plan to bring the energy to the playoffs.”
Blake Ellis started things off with a bang on the second drive of the game when he ran in a five-yard touchdown for the 6-0 lead. 
“Anytime we can get an extra helmet in the run game with our quarterback it makes a big difference,” said Wyrick. “It was good to see Blake running and throwing it well.”
Only a minute later, Ellis found Sterling open for a 60-yard touchdown pass, followed by a successful two-point conversion for the 14-0 advantage.
Carsen Ellis scored for Cherryvale from two yards out for the 14-6 score heading into the second quarter.
Sterling then picked off Cherryvale’s Ethan Umbarger for an interception, which he returned to Humboldt’s 45-yard line.
From there, Ellis ran the ball for a 16-yard touchdown, followed by a two-point conversion pass to Jacob Harrington for the 22-6 edge.
“We’re trying to spread the work around. We’re all athletes on this team,” Humboldt’s Cole Mathes said. “We work so hard in practice that we’ve got to spread the wealth. Our line is creating good holes up front for those yards. We couldn’t do it without those guys.”
A strong sequence of events occurred for the Cubs midway through the second quarter when Humboldt’s defense forced a safety on Cherryvale’s Umbarger. Then on the ensuing punt, Hull returned it 74 yards to the end zone for the 32-6 lead.
“Anytime we can create turnovers it makes a big difference. We probably should have had a couple more,” Wyrick said. “Asher also punched one out. It’s good to see us making plays on the ball.”
Hart intercepted the ball at Humboldt’s nine-yard line with five minutes left in the first half.
Ellis then hit Hull on a 23-yard touchdown pass and two-point conversion for the 40-6 lead at halftime.
The next touchdown off Ellis was Hart’s turn as he hauled in a 27-yard pass for the 48-6 advantage.
Sterling then scored from 31 yards out for the 54-6 lead heading to the fourth quarter.
