High school football: Avon falls just short in bid to win inaugural 7-on-7 state tournament

BEXLEY — When the definitive history of high school football in the state is written, the inaugural Ohio High School Football Coaches Association Division I 7-on-7 tournament might not even warrant a footnote. That didn't stop Avon from leaving it all out on the field Monday at St. Charles Prep. After starting the day with a pair of easy wins, the Eagles advanced to the final to face Lakota East. The Thunderhawks gave Avon everything they could handle and more, eventually scoring a touchdown in the final minute to beat the Eagles 21-20 to claim the first state 7-on-7 title. After falling behind 9-0 in the final, Avon rallied to to take a 20-15 lead only to see Lakota East mount a game-winning drive. "It was great to compete. I loved how our kids battled," Avon coach Mike Elder said after his team accepted the runner-up trophy and banner presented by the Army National Guard. "Our guys love to compete and they expect to win and when they don't they're disappointed." Avon, which won the real Division II state title last season, almost pulled off a miracle ending. The Eagles called time out with 12 seconds remaining to set up a final play. They came out with three wide receivers lined up to the right of quarterback of Trevor Maly, who heaved the ball to the back of the end zone where senior wide receiver Jakob Weatherspoon got his hands on the ball but was unable reel it in. Weatherspoon, an Ohio State commit, excelled on both sides of the ball Monday. "It was great. We all got to get better today," Weatherspoon said. "We did what we could do. We played our best, we didn't come out on top. That's going to just make us work harder." Maly is better known for his work in the Avon defensive backfield but he showed he can shine with the ball in his hands, as well, tossing eight touchdown passes and just one interception over three games. "I knew I had to make some plays for my team and the offense did great, we just came up a little bit short," Maly said. "We wanted to get better but we also wanted to win. It got pretty competitive out there. I feel like I got better mentally and physically just staying focused and getting reps." Avon, which had a first-round bye after winning the Perry regional tournament last week, started the day with a 20-10 win over Grove City followed by a 25-10 win over Gahanna Lincoln. Even the heat couldn't slow down the Eagles. When they took the field for their first game at 6 p.m. it was 95 degrees with a heat index of 99. "We embrace the weather, we love it," Weatherspoon said. "We'll play in anything ... rain, heat, sleet or snow." Over seven games of the two-week tournament, Lakota East was the only team to reach the end zone more than once against Avon's defense. Elder expects the 7-on-7 tournament to grow and become a permanent fixture on the state's football scene. "Personally I think it could be a really good event," Elder said. "Now that 7-on-7 football is legal, Avon would like to participate in this every June in addition to the stuff we do on Tuesday at home. We have Riverside and North Olmsted coming in (today). If our kids understand we're going to have a lot of 7-on-7 stuff for them every June I hope they won't want to join some elite travel all-star team that's going to go travel all over the place in June and July because that's what's coming in our sport." Contact Todd Shapiro at (440) 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.