Quarterback Andrew Elffers used his arm and his legs to beat Humboldt State
By Tim Peterson
(Glendora) – Azusa Pacific jumped out to a 24-6 halftime lead and rolled to a 45-13 win over over Humboldt State Saturday night at Citrus College.
Kurt Scoby scored on a 17-yard run with 3:42 left in the first quarter to open up the scoring. Humboldt State responded with a 50-yard strike from Robert Webber to Richard Doctor. The extra point was missed and the Cougars still led 7-6.
Unfortunately for Lumberjack fans, it got ugly after that as the Cougars reeled off the next 38 points. Aaron Berry returned a fumble 62 yards for a score and Jamie Cacciatore booted a 25-yard field goal for a 17-6 advantage.
Scoby found the end zone again as he hauled in a seven-yard pass from Andrew Elffers with just over two minutes left in the half. The Cougars took a 24-6 lead into the break.
In the third quarter Aaron Baltazar ripped off a 40-yard run right through the heart of the Humboldt State defense and the Cougs were cruising 31-6.
In the fourth quarter Elffers got loose on the ground, rumbling 18 yards for the touchdown. With five minutes left, Chad Jeffries found Weston Carr in the right corner of the endzone for a nine-yard TD strike for a 45-6 lead.
Isaiah Hall scored on a two-yard run late in the contest for Humboldt State for the final tally.
Elffers had a big game for the Cougars. He completed 18 of 25 for 303 yards and a touchdown with an interception. He also rushed for 64 yards and a TD on six carries. Carr caught six passes for 79 yards and a score. Chris Solomon led APU in rushing with 68 yards on six carries. Scoby finished with 38 yards and a touchdown on seven carries.
The game was the 500th in Azusa Pacific history.
“I think the one difference is the leadership on this team. This is a rivalry game every year, every time we play. I don’t care where we play it’s an intense football game,” said Coach Victor Santa Cruz. “Tonight the guys saw the fruit of their preparation. I think they were hungry and they took this program to the next level.”
Elffers was also impressed with the way his team performed after a loss last week.
“It was a huge growing experience for us. You never like to lose but this whole week in practice, day in and day out, offensively and defensively, we just went to work. And it was about getting better each and every day,” Elffers said.
Azusa Pacific improved to 6-1, 5-0 in the GNAC with the win while the Lumberjacks fell to 3-4, and 1-4.
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