Avon runs over Simsbury to capture initial Valley Gridiron Classic, 55-26

Avon High coach Jim Caouette and the Falcons celebrate after winning the Valley Gridiron Classic with a 55-26 win over Simsbury Tuesday night.

SIMSBURY, Nov. 24 – For about a quarter, there was tremendous energy in the air at Simsbury’s Holden Field. The young, underdog Simsbury High football team scored on two of their first three drives, the roars of the crowd were echoing across the campus and the Trojans had a five-point lead over Avon in the inaugural Valley Gridiron Classic.

Then, Avon popped that upset bubble. The Falcons scored 48 unanswered points to seize command of the contest on a cold Tuesday evening to pull away and capture newly-created Valley Gridiron Classic trophy with a 55-26 decision over Simsbury.

The win keeps Avon (8-2) alive in the hunt for a spot in the eight-team Class L tournament. If Middletown beats No. 4 Windsor on Wednesday night, the Dragons will secure a spot in the tournament and the Falcons will pack up the equipment for the season. If Middletown loses, it will come down to the results of two additional games on Wednesday night and three games on Thanksgiving morning and which team earns bonus points.

Either way, there were a lot of happy Avon players on the Holden Field turf Tuesday evening. “Simsbury came out and punched us in the face,” Avon coach Jim Caouette said. “They came out, played hard and aggressive. But like our kids always do, they buckled down. We are very resilient. We made adjustments on defense and we were able to do a lot on offense. We executed very well.”

Ian McDonald ran for a season-high 206 yards and four TDs against Simsbury.

Senior quarterback Ian McDonald was outstanding – as he has been all season. He ran for a game-high and season-high 206 yards and four touchdowns on 15 carries. He also completed 5-of-11 passes for 92 yards and a touchdown. He also intercepted a pass.

He wasn’t the only one contributing. Teddy Allmendinger, who ran for over 1,200 yards a year ago, ran for a season-high 93 yards and two touchdowns. This year, he was asked to block more but with defenses keying on McDonald, Allmendinger was glad to take on the challenge.

Avon forced five Simsbury turnovers (four interceptions and a fumble) while sacking junior quarterback Riley Shanley four times. Nick Schuster had 1½ sacks.

Sean Del Gallo intercepted two passes. Del Gallo, who played quarterback last fall for several games when McDonald got hurt, threw a 59-yard touchdown pass on a trick play to Robert Bujwid in the third quarter.

“It feels pretty great,” said McDonald, who became the 11th runner in school history to run for more than 1,000 yards in a single season. He has rushed for 1,059 yards. “They can never take away the fact that were the first team to win the Valley Gridiron Classic.”

A few thousand fans filled the stands for the first Valley Gridiron Classic in Simsbury.

It was just the second game between the two teams since 1968 and the first since 1991. Simsbury (1-9) played with emotion and intensity in the first quarter and a half. Despite throwing an interception on their first offensive play and giving up a quick touchdown to Avon, Simsbury scored on their next two possessions.

The Trojans marched 65 yards on five plays with Shanley completing a 26-yard touchdown pass to Alex Haggerty to cut the Falcon lead to one, 7-6. The extra point try was wide. Avon gained just three yards on its next possession and punted.

Simsbury matched 65 yards on 12 plays, scoring on a fourth down play when Haggerty caught a 10-yard pass from Shanley with 3:59 remaining in the first quarter. The two-point conversion pass failed but Simsbury led, 12-7. Haggery caught seven passes for 73 yards and three touchdowns in the game.

“They need to get past the doubt and believe,” first-year Simsbury coach Dave Masters said. “I believe in them and their coaches believe in them. For a few spurts, they believed in their ability. But they haven’t had enough winning. They’re not sure how to do it. Our biggest project in the offseason will be to get them to really believe they can win, no matter what the situation is.”

Avon’s Geoff Kirk (12) drives toward the end zone in Tuesday night’s win over Simsbury. (Photo courtesy Mark Zacchio)

Avon began to assert themselves. They took a 14-12 lead when McDonald scored on a 34-yard run to complete a quick three-play, 86-yard drive. Allmendinger ran for 45 yards on the drive.

Simsbury drove to the Avon 35-yard line but the drive stalled when Allmendinger made a big stop on fourth down and one.

Early in the second quarter, Avon extended its lead to 21-12 on a 30-yard touchdown run by Allmendinger after Danny Taylor returned a Simsbury punt 25 yards to the Trojan 30-yard line.

On its next drive, Avon receiver Geoff Kirk had to reach down for a low pass for McDonald but quickly straightened up and ran 38 yards for a touchdown and a 28-12 lead. McDonald ran in from 29 yards away to give Avon a 34-12 lead with 6:10 left in the second quarter. He added a third touchdown from five with 10 seconds left for a 41-12 halftime lead.

It took just two plays to make it 48-12 early in the third quarter. Del Gallo ran for 16 yards and McDonald ran 59 yards down the right sideline for the touchdown. It was his 24th rushing touchdown of the year and his 27th of the season.

“I’m so proud of these kids.” Caouette said. “(Teddy) ran the ball well and he was a beast on defense again. Ian was Ian. He’s been that way all year long. Geoff Kirk made some great plays. Sean Del Gallo made some great plays. (Dean) Zacchio blocked hard. It was a great team effort.”

The Avon defense forced five turnovers and sacked Simsbury QB Riley Shanley four times in Tuesday night’s Valley Gridiron Classic. (Photo courtesy Mark Zacchio)

CLASSIC NOTES: Simsbury continued to play hard right to the end. Jayvan Holmes scooped up a fumble and ran 65 yards for a touchdown with 1:37 left in the game. The Trojans successfully recovered the onside kick after that score. … Proceeds from the game went to benefit the family of Simsbury football player Danny Deitz, who received a heart transplant earlier this fall at Boston Children’s Hospital. A check for $2,500 was presented to the family at the end of the third quarter. … Former Avon High players Jimmy Murphy, D.L. McDonald and Nick Zacchio were honorary captains. … For Simsbury, the honorary captains were Tim Fogerty, Josh Helmkamp and Emily Lou McLean, the long-time Trojan trainer who will retire after 39 years of service at the end of the school year. … The series between the two schools is tied at 5-5. … It was the most points that Avon has ever scored in the series. … E.O. Smith beat Tolland on Tuesday night, 27-9 giving Middletown an additional 10 bonus points. Avon was hoping Tolland could win to earn 10 bonus points. In the CIAC ratings, Avon earns 10 bonus points for every victory by a team that that the Falcons beat in the regular season. Middletown beat E.O. Smith earlier this year. 

Avon 55, Simsbury 26
At Simsbury
Avon (8-2)                     14  27  14  0  — 55
Simsbury (1-9)              12    0    7  7  — 26
First quarter
A: Teddy Allmendinger 7 run (Alden Getz kick), 10:30
S: Alex Haggerty 26 pass from Riley Shanley (kick failed, wide), 9:23
S: Haggerty 10 pass from Shanley (pass fails), 3:59
A: Ian McDonald 34 run (Getz kick), 2:21
Second quarter
A: Allmendinger 30 run (Getz kick), 11:29
A: Geoff Kirk 38 pass from McDonald (Getz kick), 10:26
A: McDonald 29 run (kick fails, blocked), 6:10
A: McDonald 5 run (Getz kick), 0:10
Third quarter
A: McDonald 59 run (Getz kick), 11:00
A: Robert Bujwid 59 pass from Sean Del Gallo (Getz kick), 8:14
S: Haggerty 11 pass from Shanley (Jake Epstein kick), 0:16
Fourth quarter
S: Jayvan Holmes 65 fumble return (Epstein kick), 1:37
Individual statistics
RUSHING – Avon: Sean Del Gallo 1-16, Dylan Burgos 4-2, Ian McDonald 15-206, Teddy Allmendinger 5-93, Leon Asberry 6-20, Nick Baldwin 2-8, Andrew Sides 1-6; Simsbury – Grasonn Foster 20-89, Riley Shanley 15-39, Colin Cremens 6-19
PASSING: Avon – Ian McDonald 5-11-1, 92; Sean Del Gallo 1-1, 59; Simsbury – Riley Shanley 12-33-4, 138
RECEIVING: Avon – Dylan Burgos 2-20, Geoff Kirk 2-59, Teddy Allmendinger 1-13, Robert Bujwid 1-59; Simsbury – Matthew Greiten 3-32, Alex Haggerty 7-73, Sean Sinacort 1-19, Spencer Mence 1-13
SACKS: Avon – Leon Asberry 1-4, Max Kritikos ½-2, Nick Schuster 1½-10, Ryan Ollestad 1-9; FUMBLE RECOVERY: Billy Kritikos (A) 1-0, Jayvan Holmes (S) 1-65; INTERCEPTIONS: Haggerty (S) 1, Del Gallo (A) 2, Ian McDonald (A) 1, Tommy Donovan (A) 1
RETURNS: Punt – Danny Taylor (A) 2-25; Kickoffs – Haggerty (S) 2-30, Colin Cremens (S) 3-55, Dominic Francis (S) 1-22, Geoff Kirk (A) 3-23, Tommy Donovan (A) 1