Bellevue had 11 different running backs run the ball for a total of 342 rushing yards as the Wolverines romped Sedro-Woolley 48-10 Saturday night at Bellevue High School.

With the win, Bellevue returns to the state tournament and will host Lindbergh High School of Renton next week in the round of 16 teams.

Bellevue (10-0) took advantage of a tired Cubs team who had played three games in the last ten days.

“It’s hard to play Tuesday-Thursday-Saturday like they did and we took advantage of some things,” said Bellevue coach Butch Goncharoff. “The kids reacted really well tonight.”

The Wolverines scored on their first two drives of the game and held a 14-0 lead before seven minutes had expired in the game, as Freddie Levine and Eric Nelson both scored first quarter touchdowns.

“It’s just important to come out and set a tone for the whole game,” Nelson said. “If you come out flat and you don’t have it, it’s just not good.”

David Nguyen’s 38-yard run gave the Wolverines a 21-0 lead and Nelson added another score on a 1-yard run to push Bellevue’s lead to 28-0 at the half. The Cubs (7-5) only managed 54 yards in the first half.

Levine scored once more, this time on a 1-yard run to start out the third quarter, before the Cubs finally broke through with a Cody Trout 26-yard field goal. Sean Coley and Joey Mangialardi each scored fourth quarter touchdowns to give Bellevue a 48-3 lead before Sedro-Woolley junior quarterback Derek Garcia scored on a 3-yard run for the Cubs only touchdown.

The Cubs were led by senior running back Cody Pohren, who rushed for 107 yards on 17 carries, albeit 63 of those yards came on a long fourth-quarter run well after Bellevue had pulled its starting players.

Bellevue returns to the state tournament for the eighth-time since 2000. The Wolverines have won five of the last seven 3A state championships.

See Wednesday’s edition of the Reporter for more on the game.