High school football: Avon overcomes adversity and Olmsted Falls on way to regional final

NORTH RIDGEVILLE — Avon expected a better effort out of Olmsted Falls than they got during the teams' regular-season matchup, but the Eagles didn't expect to have to grind out a win Friday night in a Division II regional semifinal. Avon (13-0) had to erase a halftime deficit and then rally again in the fourth quarter before using a late offensive surge to come away with a 33-23 victory. "We came in and our players knew what we were in for," Avon coach Mike Elder said. "We were concerned and we knew that we'd be in a dogfight. I've got nothing but respect for Coach (Tom) DeLuca and his staff and team. But at the end of the day, our kids, they're never going to quit because they're so invested." The Eagles' second-half heroics were made even more challenging after starting quarterback Nolan Good, who was named the Southwestern Conference MVP earlier in the week, was injured on the final drive of the first half and didn't return to the field. Sophomore backup Blake Elder, the coach's son, stepped in and ran an effective offense — the Eagles scored a field goal to pull within 7-6 on the opening drive of the second half and took the lead near the end of the third quarter on a Jakorion Caffey touchdown run — before throwing back-to-back bombs in the fourth quarter to help Avon pull away. Trailing 15-12, Elder reared back and sent a missile down the middle of the field to Cole Kepner, who sprinted into the end zone for a 78-yard score. On Avon's next offensive play, Elder went over the top of the defense again to find Matt Maxey in the end zone for a 38-yard touchdown, giving the Eagles a 26-15 lead. "I'm happy for him, but I'm more happy for his teammates," Mike Elder said. "You know, when you play quarterback, you're gonna have great moments … and you're gonna have not-so-good moments. And he had a great moment tonight and I hope he enjoys it. And certainly my focus goes to Nolan Good and making sure he's OK. We love him and he's the undisputed leader of this team." Elder didn't have information on the severity of Good's injury following the game. Olmsted Falls (9-4), which lost to Avon 52-10 during Week 6, came out and controlled the ball during the first half, limiting the Eagles to just eight plays before a drive in the final minutes that resulted in a last-second field goal. "Yeah, that was the game plan coming in — we had to just stack first downs and keep the clock going," DeLuca said. "We felt good about our inside run game tonight." Mike Elder said watching the Bulldogs flawlessly execute their game plan and take a 7-3 lead into the half was both frustrating and impressive. "There's a pathway to victory for every team," he said. "Their pathway was to shorten the game and run the ball well, and they were executing very well. Our first possession we got called for an illegal chop block — the first time we've been called for that in five years — but it was that poor call that got us behind the sticks. And then next thing you know, the whole half is gone and you only had two possessions." The 15-yard penalty was called on Avon's first play, which turned out to be a pass option by Maxey. The junior receiver also ran the ball twice for 12 yards and caught a game-high eight passes for 119 yards and a touchdown. "I love playing all the positions," Maxey said. "Back in the day I used to be a quarterback and a running back, so I love to go back to the old days and play (those positions), too. It's definitely fun to do that." He also had a blast watching Blake Elder put together a breakout performance in the fourth quarter. "He threw two amazing balls for a sophomore," Maxey said. "I think that's just unbelievable. His arm is insane, his accuracy is insane … he's just a leader as a sophomore, which is crazy. He can throw in anywhere on the field, he can run, he makes good reads, he's smart … everything." Caffey, who finished with 103 yards on 17 carries, added another touchdown late in the fourth quarter to seal the victory, which sets up a regional final against Medina Highland next weekend. "They are such a good, physical program," Mike Elder said. "They are a lot like us, they are the Avon of Medina County and people always put a target on their backs just like we have on ours. We've got our work cut out for us." Contact Shaun Bennett at (440) 329-7137 or sbennett@chroniclet.com. Like him on Facebook and follow him @ShaunBennettct on Twitter.