It was only natural to have Southwestern Conference powerhouses (No. 1 seed) Avon and (5) Olmsted Falls play each other in a Division II, Region 6 semifinal, as they have the previous two seasons.
At North Ridgeville’s Ranger Stadium on Nov. 10, the history that repeated itself with the same outcome, as the Eagles defeated Olmsted Falls, 33-23.
Avon advanced to the Region 6 final for the seventh straight year. The Eagles won five of their six previous regional finals appearances. They’ll play Highland on Nov. 17 at a site to be announced.
Avon was without quarterback Nolen Good for the second half. Backup Blake Elder entered the game and threw two late touchdown passes to Cole Kepner (78 yards) and Matt Maxey (38). His passes took the lead and helped seal the game.
Olmsted Falls fought tooth-and-nail against the team that beat it, 52-10, during the regular season. Quarterback Jimmy Rosol scored three touchdowns. Two were on the ground and the other was a 3-yard reception from teammate Logan Connelly.
The Bulldogs attempted an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff. Olmsted Falls recovered, but the referee ruled that a Bulldog touched the ball before it went 10 yards.
The Eagles' defense also came up with a stop on fourth down inside Olmsted Falls' territory.
Running back Derek Neckar was stuffed, but by the time Rosol pulled on the quarterback option, the play was whistled dead and a turnover on downs. Running back Jakorion Caffey scored his first of two touchdowns to lead, 12-7.
Olmsted Falls dominated time of possession. In turn, the defense held Avon to 108 yards of offense in the first half.
Avon's Luke Hamilton pinned Olmsted Falls inside the 10 from a punt.
The Bulldogs orchestrated a 16-play, 92-yard drive to score first in the second quarter. Rosol broke two tackles to score a 9-yard touchdown.
Running back Derek Neckar was tough for the Eagles to stop up the middle, as he had 66 first-half rushing yards.
Avon quickly went down the field, but was stuffed on a fourth-and-1 for a turnover on downs
The Eagles got their offense going near the end of the first half, but Olmsted Falls' defense forced them to kick a field goal by Owen Warrick.
Avon improved to 13-0 and has won 24 consecutive games against SWC foes since Week 4 of 2021, including postseason games.
Olmsted Falls finishes 9-4 (4-3 in SWC). It lost two games in a three-week stretch against Avon and North Ridgeville at the halfway point of the season. After the 52-10 Week 6 loss to Avon, the Bulldogs won five of their next six games to reach the regional semifinals for the third straight year.
THE SCORE
Avon 33, Olmsted Falls 23
