Shaun Bennett: Avon defense does it again, but can it carry the Eagles to a state title?

Every high school football coach with an above-average defense loves the old adage … defense wins championships. Avon coach Mike Elder must certainly be a fan of the saying as his defense helped the Eagles capture their second championship of the season Friday night. After an unblemished run to its eighth Southwestern Conference crown during the regular season, Avon dominated early and answered Highland's second-half rallies for a 28-14 victory in the Division II, Region 6 final — the Eagles' sixth regional championship in the past seven years. Avon's defense answered the call early against the Hornets, keeping them off the scoreboard during the first half and allowing only 63 yards of offense — 40 coming on Highland's final drive and with the Hornets trailing 14-0. Highland lost 5 yards on its opening drive, gained 2 yards on its second drive and finished with 13 yards on its third possession. The fourth possession ended with an interception by senior free safety Carson Canning, who was named the Northeast Lakes District Player of the Year this season and should be a lock to land on the All-Ohio first team. Avon's defense suffered its first blow when Highland took the opening kick of the second half and drove 59 yards on 12 plays — the Eagles aided the progress with a pair of penalties in the red zone — to cut the lead in half. Avon's offense answered with a three-and-out and it appeared the Hornets had fully captured the momentum and were poised to pull an upset of the top-seeded Eagles. Sophomore running back Casey Myser, who was responsible for most of Highland's big offensive gains Friday night, took the ball on a sweep to the left side and a wall of Avon defenders came crashing down on him for a 2-yard loss. Senior quarterback Peyton Janickas, who was Highland's other top offensive threat in the regional final, took the second-down snap and tried to squeeze through a hole on the left side of the line and was pulled down for a 3-yard gain. Janickas' pass on third down was off target and the Avon defense ran off the field celebrating the big stop. The Eagles scored again early in the fourth to regain their two-touchdown lead, and the Hornets answered with a second scoring drive — this one capped by a big 48-yard touchdown pass from Janickas to Myser. Again Avon sputtered to a three-and-out and again it came down to the Eagles needing a big defensive stand to keep Highland from tying the game. The Hornets, pinned back at their 6-yard line thanks to a booming punt by offensive lineman and Michigan recruit Luke Hamilton, managed to pick up a couple of first downs out to their 30. But a couple of short runs by Janickas sandwiched between a pair of incompletions led to Highland turning the ball over on downs on their own 36. Two plays later, senior running back Jakorion Caffey scored his third touchdown of the game and Avon was pulling out the polish to put the shine on another regional trophy. The 14 points surrendered was the fourth-most Avon has allowed during its unbeaten season — the most has been 28 against Amherst in a 63-28 victory — and the Eagles are allowing just 9.4 points a game. That's a championship-winning stat for sure … but is it good enough to win the elusive state championship Avon has been chasing for the past couple of decades? Avon's defense — as well as its offense, special teams and coaching staff — is about to face its toughest test of the season next Friday in a state semifinal matchup against Akron Hoban, which has won five state championships in the last eight years. It will be the Eagles' fifth meeting with the Knights in the past seven years and the first four did not go well for Avon. If Avon is going to get over the Hoban hump, its defense will be key. The Eagles defense was big in a Week 3 win over Glenville, stopping the defending Division IV state champion's win streak at 17. It also came up big in the regional semifinals when starting quarterback Nolan Good was knocked out of the game and Avon needed to limit Olmsted Falls' tricky triple-option offense. The defense answered the call again Friday night against Highland. Elder has called this defense the greatest in Avon history and it will have to play that way at least one more time to give the Eagles a chance next week. Contact Shaun Bennett at (440) 329-7137 or sbennett@chroniclet.com. Like him on Facebook and follow him @ShaunBennettct on Twitter.