ASHLAND — It was over almost before it ever began.

With the Class 5A district title on the line, Johnson Central used its wishbone backfield to power through Ashland’s defense in a 41-6 blowout at Putnam Stadium on Friday night.

By the time senior tight end Ian Welch took a reverse 45 yards around the right side late in the second quarter, making Ashland’s end man bite on an inside-out juke move and then outrunning the defense down the sideline, it was pretty well under wraps.

That score gave Welch 109 yards on three carries and put unbeaten Central up 34-0 with 2:09 remaining before halftime.

Welch’s astounding 36-yard per carry average in the first half was just the start of it, though.

Before the teams hit the locker rooms at the half, Central had a 281-57 total yard advantage. The Golden Eagles had two players with more than 100 yards on the ground — Nathan Dillon joined Welch with 111 yards on eight carries — and quarterback Dennis Dillon had scored three times.

Compounding the damage, Central’s defense didn’t allow the Tomcats to cross midfield until several minutes had ticked off in the second quarter and picked off freshman quarterback Sam Hunter twice.

“There’s not much you can say,” Ashland coach Leon Hart said. “They have tremendous strength and speed. They just shut us down.”

On the opposing sideline, the fast start was just what Central coach Jim Matney was looking for.

“Our kids have played this way all year,” Matney said.

Leading the way was Welch. The senior finished the game with four carries for 124 yards and caught a 26-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter. He also had three tackles and nearly broke free on a long kickoff return in the second half.

“I can’t say much about myself, it was my teammates. I have to put them out in front of me,” Welch said. “Without them I couldn’t do anything. I just try to stay focused and do my job.”

Welch scored the game’s first touchdown on a 30-yard dash off the left side on the Golden Eagles’ first possession.

Dennis Dillon scored on a 3-yard run later in the first quarter and quickly made the score 20-0 on a 25-yard run after D.J. Ousley blocked an Ashland kick and gave Central the ball deep in Tomcat territory.

“We come out and don’t get much done offensively and in no time they’re in the end zone again,” Hart said. “There’s no question, that’s the best football team we’ve played this season.”

With the win, Central secured the district championship for the third straight year. The Golden Eagles (9-0, 4-0 in district) would play at home at least through three rounds of the playoffs and will open the postseason against Holmes in two weeks. Next week is a matchup of unbeatens at home against Belfry.

Meanwhile, the Tomcats will head into the playoffs on a sour note. However, Ashland did secure a home playoff game with Whitley County’s win over Woodford County on Friday. A complicated tie-breaking scenario seeded the No. 2 through No. 4 positions in the district as the Tomcats will host Dixie Heights in the first round. Ashland is on a bye next week.

Hunter teamed up with Ryan Bonner for a 3-yard touchdown pass to provide the Tomcats’ lone score on Friday.

Running back Rashard Carter led the Tomcats (6-4, 2-2) with 53 yards on eight carries but left the game after a big hit in the third quarter. He was limping off the field after the game.

Hart had many second-teamers in the game by the end of the third quarter.

“We need a week to get healthy because we got beat up tonight,” he said.

ADAM VANKIRK can be reached at avankirk@dailyindependent.com