LONDON GROVE – What can a football team do at 2-6 heading into the second-to-last game of the season, and already a longshot to qualify for the district playoffs?
Well, Avon Grove employed a suffocating defense, held visiting Kennett to 100 yards of total offense, and beat the Blue Demons 14-10 on Friday to open the possibility of an unlikely Ches-Mont South Division championship.
“Our guys knew what they had to do tonight to have an opportunity next week,” said Devils’ head coach Joe Coffey. “But I don’t think they realize how important tonight was for our football program.”
With the win, Avon Grove (2-1, 3-6 overall) moves into a three-way tie atop of the South Division standings with one game to go. If Avon Grove can beat one-win Sun Valley on the road next Friday, and if Kennett (2-1, 7-2) can get past visiting Oxford (2-1), the Devils will win the crown.
“We checked the standings and we know we can still win the Ches-Mont South,” said running back Jose Sabastro. “We were focused on Kennett this week and now we are going to focus on Sun Valley.”
In a defensive struggle, Sabastro was the only offensive standout on either side. The senior finished with 179 rushing yards on 26 attempts, including an electrifying 62-yard TD run early in the final period that wound up being the difference.
“I joke with Jose a lot when I try to remind him that he is more Marshawn Lynch than he realizes,” Coffey said, comparing Sabastro with the former NFL star nicknamed ‘Beast Mode.’ “When he runs that way, he is one heck of a running back.”
Trailing 10-7, Sabastro took an innocent looking run, got to the edge and raced down the near sideline to cap a nine-play, 90-yard march with 9:10 on the clock.
“I saw that we had a good seal on the outside, I saw a hole and there was just green grass,” he recalled. “I don’t think I was even touched. On Senior Night, to score the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter, it doesn’t get much better than that.”
Kennett got the ball back three more times down the stretch, but were unable to do anything to regain the lead. On the first, Avon Grove senior Chase Kinsella blocked a Demons’ punt and recovered the ball. The second was one of four three-and-outs forced by the Avon Grove defense. And the last was one of three sacks on the night for the Devils – this one by senior linebacker Xander Binstead.
“We fought the whole game, and that punt block was big. That was a big momentum shift in our direction,” Sabastro said.
“The defense did a great job tonight,” Coffey added. “We knew (Kennett) wanted to throw the ball. Hats off to our coaching staff – they had a great defensive game plan.”
In all, Kennett managed a mere 100 yards of total offense – 32 on the ground and 68 through the air.
“I’m not surprised. (Avon Grove) is a big, physical team,” said Demons’ head coach Lance Frazier. “For us, it’s about efficiency. We’ve been warning about it all season. We are going to get in a big game and our sloppiness is going to catch up to us? This was that night.
“This was a championship-type game where you don’t want that to show up. Hopefully we learned something from it.”
The only TD in the first half came late in the first quarter when the Devils’ marched 82 yards on 11 plays, with Binstead covering the final two yards.
Kennett made it 7-3 at the half when Shay Barker booted a 44-yard field goal in the second, not long after a 12-yard Avon Grove punt set the Demons up in positive territory.
Kennett seized the lead after halftime with a 54-yard series that included two personal foul penalties on the Devils. Tight end Croix Kise hauled in a 14 yard pass from quarterback Garrett McCracken. It was the longest play of the game allowed by Avon Grove.
“It is Senior Night and our guys were physical. They wanted this so bad,” Coffey said.
“Our linebackers played excellent – they really stepped up. Guys like (Graham) Picard, Van Erickson, Xander Binstead and (Dylan) Laganelli.”
The Devils managed 235 yards of total offense, but a vast majority came from Sabastro.
“Big props to the O-line. We ran the ball well. When Xander Binstead is in there, it takes some of the focus off of me,” he said.
“We knew (Sabastro) would be a handful,” Frazier added. “He’s a tough runner and a fast kid who gets low to the ground. We knew it was going to be like a 12-round boxing match. Could we weather (Avon Grove’s) running game?
“We are strong against the pass, so the key to our defense all season has been stopping the run.”
Kennett now has to have some help in order to win the division crown. The Demons must beat Oxford and hope for a Sun Valley upset. Because if Kennett and Avon Grove both finish 3-1, the Devils would win the tiebreaker due to their head-to-head win.
“We struggled tonight assignment-wise on offense,” Frazier said. “It’s on us as coaches to go back to the drawing board, and preach and teach. How we are going to respond is a huge piece. I told the guys that I am excited. I can’t wait to see how they show up on Monday. Are they going to fight back?
“When you are learning how to win and you take a big loss, are you going to be a finger pointer, or a thumb pointer? Are you going to turn on guys or look at yourself in the mirror? And that’s for all of us, coaches and players. What can I do better to improve this team?
Avon Grove 14, Kennett 10
Kennett 0 3 7 0 – 10
Avon Grove 7 0 0 7 – 14
Scoring
AG – Binstead 2 run (Van Kleek kick)
K – Barker 44 FG
K – Kise 14 pass from McCracken (Barker kick)
AG – Sabastro 62 run (Van Kleek kick)
Team statistics K AG
First downs 7 9
Rushing yards 32 196
Passing yards 68 39
Total yards 100 235
Complete-Att-Int 11-23-0 8-13-0
Fumbles-lost 2-0 1-0
Punts-ave. 6-39.5 5-24.8
Penalties 4-28 6-65
Individual statistics
RUSHING – K: Reidenberg 8-15; McCracken 11-7; Carabajal 1-3; Ritch 1-7. AG: Sabastro 26-179, TD; Moerder 4-6; Binstead 4-7, TD; DiCrecchio 3-3; Harriott 1-1.
PASSING – K: McCracken 11-23, 68 yards. AG: Moerder 8-13, 39 yards.
RECEIVING – K: Carabajal 2-0; Ritch 1-4; Taylor 2-25; Reidenberg 2-10; Kise 4-29, TD. AG: Binstead 5-27; Hoffmeister 1-6; DiCrecchio 1- (-4); Olander 1-10.
Sacks – AG: Pitman, Gonzalez, Binstead.
Source: Berkshire mont