Anyone doubting how much one player can impact a football game needed to be at Ely School Stadium last Friday.
That’s when Cherry standout Isaiah Asuma was all but a one-man band.
Asuma, who is bound for Montana State, had a hand in all four Cherry touchdowns and dominated in every way as the Tigers tamed the Timberwolves 30-8.
It was a battle of 0-3 teams, but Asuma was clearly the difference on another nice night for football in Ely.
The quarterback ran for 185 yards and two touchdowns and completed seven passes, including two for scores, for another 132 yards.
Either through by ground or air, Asuma was responsible for more than threefourths of Cherry’s total offense, and he also played defense and handled punting duties.
The Wolves had little answer for Asuma and a stretch near the end of the first half sealed the Wolves’ fate.
It appeared the teams would play to a scoreless standoff through the first half, but Ely stalled on offense with about three minutes left in the second quarter and gave the ball back to the Tigers.
That’s when Asuma struck quickly, hooking up with receiver Max Bautch on what turned out to be a 65-yard scoring play and an 8-0 Cherry lead.
The Wolves couldn’t respond on offense, and Cherry got the ball back with a minute left and Asuma again made quick work.
The Tigers marched into Ely territory and got a break when there was less than a second on the clock and time for one more play.
Asuma found Bautch again, this time for a 10yard score and a 16-0 lead at the half.
Ely, which managed 200 yards of total offense in the game, got on the board in the third quarter when sophomore Gunnar Skager scored from five yards out. The two-point conversion made it 16-8 and the Wolves seemed to be back in the contest.
Asuma and the Tigers answered back, with the quaterback running it from the Ely 17.
A 52-yard scamper by Asuma in the final quarter closed out the scoring.
Skager proved to be the workhorse on the Ely offense, running for 87 yards on 24 carries.
Senior Owen Marolt added another 31 yards on the ground, while Sawyer Hegman finished with 18 yards and Sean Merriman wound up with 14.
Quarterback DJ Johnson, a sophomore, was one-forseven through the air with a 27-yard completion to Marolt.
• The Wolves played at Deer River Friday night and they are slated to take on Chisholm on Friday, Oct. 9.
• Ely’s final regular season home contest will be played in Babbitt, on Wednesday, Oct. 14.
The Wolves will meet East Central that night at 6 p.m. in what’s being dubbed “The Babbitt Bowl.”
It will mark the first time a high school football game will be played in Babbitt since 2019.
Ely and Northeast Range have a cooperative agreement for high school football and the roster includes several Northeast Range students.
