Warriors wallop Wilbur-Creston in quarterfinals

Since scoring 68 points on the way to winning its first game of the season in early September, Almira/Coulee-Hartline has been on a mission. Not just a mission to win a state title, but to leave no doubt in the scoring.

And once Colin Deyarmin bowled his way into the end zone to give the Warriors (11-0) a 48-point lead ending Saturday’s State 1B quarterfinal game with 9:43 remaining in the fourth quarter, they had proven once again how utterly unstoppable they truly are.

It was not just that ACH cruised to a 56-8 victory over Wilbur-Creston (8-4) Saturday at Gonzaga Prep, but it did so by scoring on each of its eight offensive drives, amassing 478 yards of total offense in the process.

“We wanted to punch them in the mouth and play them hard all game,” ACH quarterback Derek Isaak said. “We love good execution on offense, getting after it and pounding the ball. It was fun today.”

Isaak did most of the punching early, tallying three of his four rushing touchdowns and both passing TDs in the opening half, to give the Warriors a 36-0 lead at halftime.

For the game, Isaak finished with 237 of his team’s 312 rushing yards and threw for another 166 yards with eight total TDs.

“(Isaak) played great tonight,” ACH coach Brandon Walsh said. “He ran hard and ran with a purpose. It’s fun to see and it definitely makes play-calling easy.”

Defensively, the Warriors held the Wildcats to just 182 yards of offense, forcing two interceptions of quarterback Jacob Struve – the first of which came on the opening play of the second half.

With W-C trying to chew up the clock and sustain long drives, the Warriors used the mantra of “bend, don’t break” according to Walsh, holding W-C to just two possessions inside of Warriors territory and only one touchdown.

When the Wildcats finally did get on the scoreboard on a 12-yard touchdown run by Hayden Herdrick in the third quarter, it was still a 34-point game.

Herdrick finished with 71 yards rushing to lead W-C, while Cody Johns added 54 yards on the ground.

The next step for the Warriors is the semifinals where they will once again match up with Cusick, which they beat 54-6 earlier this season, scoring 54 consecutive points.

“(Cusick) is a great team and always has been,” Isaak said. “It’s not at our home this time so I think it will make a difference. It’s going to be a good game and they’re going to give us all they can handle.

“I think us and Cusick are the two best teams and we’re going to treat it like it’s a state championship game.”

Almira/Coulee-Hartline 56, Wilbur-Creston 8