GRANGER TWP. — Dave Dlugosz was right.
“We probably had more total yards than they had,” Dlugosz said. “But the numbers on the scoreboard are what matter.”
And the figures on the board weren’t pretty for Dlugosz and his Avon Lake team. The Shoremen were on the slender side of a 35-23 score in a Division II, Region 6 quarterfinal game Friday against Highland, in spite of a 366-365 edge in total yards.
And they were always the team with the smaller number of points. Highland used a diverse offense and a smothering defense to build a 14-0 lead late in the first half and a 28-3 advantage with 3:18 remaining in the third quarter.
“We got off to a slow start,” Dlugosz said. “We didn’t get going until the second half.”
The defense displayed by Highland was the reason for the Shoremen’s slow start. The Hornets allowed Avon Lake only 93 yards in first half, with 75 coming on the final possession before halftime.
On offense, meanwhile, Highland was racking up 200 yards in the first half. The Hornets had 93 yards passing to only 17 for Avon Lake. Both Highland touchdowns in the first half came on passes.
“Their passing game is better than ours,” Dlugosz said. “I’m not fooling anyone. No one is more physical than us. Our problem is we’re primarily a running team and can’t come back quickly.”
And when Mike Mansnerus, Avon Lake’s star running back, failed to get any traction in the first half, the Shoremen were at a distinct disadvantage. Mansnerus, who gained 1,596 in eight games before Friday, was held to 31 yards on 10 carries in the first half.
Oddly, Highland’s Chris Snook, a 1,484-yard rusher headed to play football at West Virginia University next fall, had only 23 yards on nine tries. But with Nick Knerem firing a 31-yard pass to Kyle Callari for a score and throwing a 41-yard touchdown to Aaron Maslowski, Snook’s rushing was not as essential.
The victory puts Highland (10-1), the region’s No. 4 seed, in the regional semifinal next Friday against Olentangy Liberty, which upset No. 1 seed and previously unbeaten Toledo Central Catholic, 34-7. Avon Lake finished 8-3.
“The worst thing about this is that on Monday afternoon, instead of walking out on the practice field with these kids, we will be doing nothing,” Dlugosz said. “These guys are the kinds of kids you would want your own kids to hang around with.”
Mansnerus picked it up in the second half and finished with 125 yards on 28 carries. But Snook got his game going as well and ended with 153 yards on 19 attempts. Snook’s first run of the second half was a 63-yard touchdown run to give the Hornets a 21-3 lead.
“He’s a great back,” Dlugosz said. “He has a full ride (scholarship) to a Division I school for a reason. But he knows he played a football game tonight.”
Snook’s first TD came one play after Avon Lake was stopped on a fourth-down play to end the first drive of the second half.
“We hit him (Snook) hard for four quarters and it didn’t seem to bother him,” Avon Lake safety Nick Brill said. “Highland plays our kind of football. We hit them and they hit us. They were just the better team.”
 The Hornets went ahead 28-3 when Jarrod Swick went 20 yards on a sweep. The TD was set up by a 35-yard pass from Knerem to Ben Brown.
Avon Lake came back as Pete Hart completed passes of 36 yards and 33 yards to DFn Schneider before Steve Mares scored on a 2-yard run. The Shoremen made it 28-15 at 7:37 of the fourth quarter on a 1-yard run by Hart.
Highland put the finishing touch on its victory as Snook ran 25 yards to the end zone with 4:19 remaining. A final TD by Avon Lake came as Hart hooked up with Ryan Kirkpatrick on a 56-yard scoring pass with 1:04 remaining.
Contact Steve Byrne at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. 

In order to comment, you must agree to our user agreement and discussion guidelines.

Need help? Email Us.