WEBSTER CITY — The final week of the prep regular season will present an old-fashioned North Central Conference battle with plenty on the line.

Webster City plays host to Humboldt this Friday night, with the winner earning an automatic spot in the Class 3A playoffs.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Lynx Field.

Last week, both Webster City (6-2 overall, 3-1 in district) knocked off Algona and the Wildcats (5-3, 3-1) stunned Clear Lake. That has forced quite the log-jam atop the standings, as the Lions are also 3-1 in district play.

With a win by both Humboldt and the Lions (7-1), who face Charles City, Humboldt would secure the district title and Clear Lake would be the runner-up. If Webster City wins, they would be the second automatic qualifier with the Lions claiming the crown.

Four at-large selections for the playoffs will be determined through the RPI, which currently features the Top-5 in the league all ranked inside the Top-16.

Since a 10-2 loss to Clear Lake last month, the Lynx have been on a roll, blowing out Hampton-Dumont/CAL, Charles City and Algona by a combined score of 131-19. Jaxon Cherry returned to the field vs. the Bulldogs, rushing 25 times for 218 yards with four trips to the end zone.

As a team, Webster City had 457 yards on the ground, averaging eight yards per carry. Keegan Hisler added 85 with two scores and Cael Nixon had 77 and a TD.

Cherry has 1,265 yards and 18 touchdowns on the year with Nixon adding 586 and seven and Hisler 518 and five.

The Lynx defense held all-state quarterback Alex Manske to zero yards passing and negative-17 yards on the ground. Algona finished with just 69 yards of total offense on the night.

Humboldt has gone 3-1 over its last four with wins over Hampton-Dumont/CAL, Charles City and Clear Lake around a loss to Algona. Coen Matson had three first half rushing scores vs. the Lions and Lance Coon added two in the second half.

On the year, Matson has thrown for 876 yards and rushed for 456 while Coon has 515 and eight TDs in four games since returning from a broken hand.

Webster City leads the series 9-4 over the last 13 meetings, but Humboldt has claimed each of the last two, including a 10-0 win last season. From 2015-2020, the Lynx went 6-1 against their rivals.

Algona (5-3, 2-2) will host Hampton-Dumont/CAL (5-3, 1-3) with both fighting for a potential playoff spot. Manske leads Algona with 1,510 yards passing and 14 touchdowns, as the junior has yet to throw an interception.

Evan Allie has rushed for a team-high 634 yards and hauled in another 200 in the air with seven combined scores. Manske has 605 yards rushing and 11 TDs, and Porter Reffer has caught 38 passes for 823 with seven touchdowns.

For Hampton-Dumont/CAL, Gavin Meader has 683 yards passing, 532 yards rushing and 18 scores. Brody Walton has 730 yards rushing and eight touchdowns.