Humboldt signaled their intention early, working the ball quickly to wing DeShawn Ellis, who was caught but gave Endicott something to think about.
Pinned in their own end Endicott needed to take advantage of the big in-goal areas at Aveva Stadium to give themselves time and space to kick clear. They didn’t and Humboldt burst in to charge the kick down and score. Small but scrappy and quite effective with the ball, Endicott cut through into Humboldt territory, but after a long period of defense the Lumberjacks were able to steal the ball and put fullback Bridger Paradis away.
The fullback galloped the length of the field to score a momentum-shifting try, and flyhallf Dante Cappellano hit the touchline conversion to make it 14-0. Endicott seemed their own worst enemy, especially at lineout time where the ball consistently ended up in the hands of Humboldt No. 8 Late Kolopeaua. One of those was close to the try line and Kolopeaua was over to make it 19-0.
But Endicott just needed to get going, and they did, torching the Lumberjacks with two cutback runs off the wing. Suddenly it was 19-14, and as the half loomed a ball handling error from Humboldt allowed a Gull player to swoop in and score under the posts to make it 21-19 Endicott.
Humboldt looked tired but they were still putting the forwards through the phases. A penalty led to a lineout and a maul and prop Adrian Magana picked up and was over.
Cal Poly Humboldt led 24-21 at halftime, but there were some serious questions as to whether they could handle the heat or the pace of the game in the second half.
They did, somehow. Stuck in their 22 for a while, Humboldt finally put boot to ball and some snappy passing from Cappellano set free DeShawn Ellis for a try under the posts and a 29-21 lead. Even as they struggled with the heat, Humboldt did enough to defend and work their pattern. Prop Logan Zampa barreled over in open play, and then one more try made it 41-21.
Up a player due to a yellow card, Endicott scored late, but really they rarely saw good possession in the second half. In many ways it was an improbable win for Humboldt because they got some tries against the run of play and it looked as if Endicott would finish the stronger. And yet they powered on and are in the small college final.
