Falcons win share of the CCC Tier 4 title with dominating win over Rocky Hill

With a 46-21 win over Rocky Hill, the Avon High football won a share of the CCC Tier 4 championship Thursday night.

ROCKY HILL, Nov. 18, 2021 – The Avon High football team did what they’ve done all season Thursday night against Rocky Hill. They ran over people.

The Falcons grabbed a share of their first league championship since 2015 with a dominating 46-21 victory Rocky Hill at McVicar Field. Avon (6-2, 5-0 CCC Tier 4) ran for 335 yards and six touchdowns to claim a piece of the Central Connecticut Conference Tier 4 pennant.

The Falcons, who had three interceptions in the game, can win the CCC Tier 4 title outright on Tuesday night with a win over Lewis Mills at 6:15 p.m.

Not only did the Falcons win a share of a title but they moved another step closer to their first CIAC Class M playoff berth since 2012. Avon is ranked fifth with the top eight teams qualifying for the tournament.

Avon QB Tabor Engle ran for a game-high 222 yards and a career-high five touchdowns on 32 carries. The five TDs in a single game ties the school record with five other Falcon players. It was done most recently in 2010 by Ross McDonald.

The key to winning for the sixth time in eight starts? “We were able to run the ball,” Falcon coach Jeff Redman said. “Things were going out way but it comes down to discipline. It comes down to focus. It comes down to executing your assignment the best possible way you can. Thank god our kids just believe in what we’re doing. They really got it going.”

Rocky Hill (5-4, 4-2 CCC Tier 4) mustered up little offense outside of quarterback Tyreice Domonique, who ran for a team-high 141 yards and three touchdowns. He had TD runs of 19, 50 and 53 yards. Outside of Domonique’s rushing, the Terriers managed an additional 15 yards on the ground and another 39 through the air.

Avon QB Tabor Engle ran for 222 yards and 5 TDs, tying a school record Thursday night in a 46-21 win over Rocky Hill.

Rocky Hill head coach Richard Dance has seen a similar offense when he played for the Terriers in the early 2000s under head coach Dave Coyne. “We ran the hammer and it was very similar to this offense and we won a lot of games with that. We frustrated a lot of defenses with it,” Dance said. “Now, this is the hammer all over again. It’s tough to defend. Guys come in and wall people out. Avon is a big team and they have big kids.

“It’s difficult when you’re getting pushed around to find solutions (to stop the Falcons),” Dance admitted.

Avon set the tone on its first drive, marching 73 yards on 13 plays, eating up 7:00 and having Engle score from the one-yard line for a 7-0 lead. The Falcons made it 15-0 on a three-yard run from Engle and a two-point conversion run from Cameron Dawiczyk with 1:25 left in the second quarter.

But Domonique broke free for a 53-yard touchdown run with 1:03 left to cut the lead to 15-7 at the break.

The Falcons scored on their opening drive of the third quarter with Dawiczyk going over from the two-yard line and Engle rushing in for two points for a 23-7 lead. Engle’s 14-yard run with 1:14 left in the third quarter extended the lead to 31-7.

Avon’s Cameron Casey had an interception and a 45-yard return while Nicholas Seminara had an interception and a 21-yard return. Connor Lavore chased down Domonique for a 25-yard sack.

Domonique had a pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter for the Terriers.

Engle scored his fifth touchdown on a 10-yard run with a few Terrier defenders hanging off his shoulder pads. With his two-point conversion run earlier, he finished the day with 32 points, two points shy of the school record of 34 set by Mike D’Onofrio in 2007. Engle is the third Falcon to score 32 points in a single game. It was most recently done twice in 2011 by Colin Moore.

This game was originally scheduled to be played in week two on Sept. 19, but the first three games of the season were postponed due to players on the squad getting COVID-19 and other players being placed into quarantine due to contact tracing and being exposed to the virus.

Avon played Tolland during their scheduled bye week in October but lost their game with Notre Dame-Fairfield.

The Falcons played six days ago on Friday in a win over East Catholic and there were moments where you could see a player get up a little slower and conserve their energy. But with a championship on the line, the Falcons came to play.

“It was for a championship,” Redman said. “They don’t care if they are tired. They don’t care if their dinged up. This was for all of the marbles, right now and we won the league.”

Avon’s last title was the CCC Division III East championship in 2015, their first year in the CCC.

Avon 46, Rocky Hill 21
At Rocky Hill
Avon (6-2)          7  8  16  15  — 46
Rocky Hill (5-4)  0  7    0  14  — 21
First quarter
A: Tabor Engle 1 run (Toby Klaftner kick), 3:20
Second quarter
A: Engle 3 run (Cameron Dawiczyk run), 1:25
RH: Tyreice Domonique 53 run (Brody Troiano kick), 1:03
Third quarter
A: Dawiczyk 1 run (Engle run), 8:13
A: Engle 14 run (Connor Lavore run) 1:14
Fourth quarter
RH: Domonique 19 run (run fails), 10:45
A: Engle 3 run (Dawiczyk run), 7:59
RH: Domonique 50 run (M.J. Torres run), 6:58
A: Engle 10 run (Klaftner kick), 1:17
Individual statistics
RUSHING: Avon – Tabor Engle 32-222, Cameron Dawiczyk 12-60, Cameron Casey 4-10, Connor Lavore 3-28, Mason Eckerlin 1-15; Rocky Hill – Tyreice Dominique 14-141, M.J. Torres 4-15, Desmond Connolly 1-0, Oleg Korotkyy 1-4
PASSING: Avon – Tabor Engle 1-1-0, 18; Rocky Hill – Tyreice Dominique 8-17-3, 39
RECEIVING: Avon – Nicholas Seminara 1-18; Rocky Hill – Oleg Korotkyy 1-5, Frank Guerrera 5-21, Alexander Peruta 1-6, Ryan Bozzi 1-5
INTERCEPTIONS: Nicholas Seminara (A) 1-21, Cameron Casey (A) 1-21, Arsh Moza (A) 1-0; BLOCKED PUNT: Bozzi (RH); FUMBLE RECOVERY: Nathaniel Burrows (RH)

Thursday’s game
Avon 46, Rocky Hill 21
Tuesday’s game
Lewis Mills at Avon, 6:15 p.m.
E.O. Smith at Tolland
Wednesday’s game
Cromwell/Portland at Rocky Hill
Thursday’s game
East Catholic at Northeast Catholic
End regular season