The Silver Rail Rivalry

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Avon and Avon Lake, two of my favorite cities to cover their High School Athletics. Two cities filled with passionate, supportive and knowledgeable sports fans.  Great coaches, great Athletic Directors, great fans and great parents!  It’s impossible not to like either one of these cities, but, when they play each other, the hatred and competitiveness is so thick, you can feel it from outside of Lorain County. Make no mistake about it folks, this is the rivalry that put Kee On Sports on the High School Football map!

For more years than I can count, Avon Lake dominated the SWC with one run to the playoffs after another, and even a state title in 2003 and a state runner up crown in 2004. The Shoremen have over 557 wins since 1939 and 260 wins in just the last 30 seasons alone.  They have won a whopping 39 Conference Championships including 21 of the last 36 SWC Conference Championships. 22 trips to the playoffs in that stretch with 20 coming in the last 26 years. For years and years, the SWC ran through Avon.

Then, an interesting thing happened, Mike Elder showed up in Avon and took over the Eagles, and suddenly, we had one hell of a rivalry on our hands.  The two teams have played yearly since 2010 and starting in 2012, Avon became a member of the SWC, making things even further interesting.

First, let’s step back just a bit, the two teams didn’t play a single time from 1960-2007, but when the decision was made in 2010 to make this a yearly game, combined with the conference switch of Avon in 2012, there was no chance this wasn’t becoming one of the most heated rivalries in the state.

It’s a border war if there ever was one as you can leave Avon Lake High Schools parking lot, take a left and you’re in Avon within minutes.  That is if you don’t decide to stop off at one of the many eateries on the way.

In 2015, I got my first real taste of this rivalry and was instantly hooked on it.  Ironically enough it was the same year the Rivalry got his official name of “The Silver Rail Rivalry” representing the train tracks that run through both cities.  It even came with a shiny new trophy, courtesy of the Avon Lions Club.  The idea actually came from an Avon Lake resident according to sources with the club.  Either way, it was a very cool idea!

Heading into 2015 is where we will pick this rivalry up.  At that point, dating back to 2010 the Eagles had won 4 of the two teams previous 5 matchups. Again, this would be my first taste of the rivalry as a reporter in only the second game I ever covered.  I would learn quickly just how important this game was to everyone involved.

September 4, 2015 was week two as Avon quarterback Jake Sopko led the charge as the host Avon Eagles soared past Avon Lake to win the brand-new Silver Rail trophy in their Southwestern Conference debut.  The senior and future University of Cincinnati Bearcat Sopko, threw for 272 yards, three touchdowns and ran for one.  He was instrumental in the Eagles 31-7 victory.

Avon took an early lead and never looked back as they forced the Shoremen to punt on their first drive and the Eagles scored on their first possession with a 21-yard touchdown pass from Sopko to senior Will Heilman. The Eagles then caught their rivals off guard as they sneaked a successful two-point conversation to go up 8-0 with 3:02 left in the first quarter.

Avon Lake failed to score again on its next drive, even after a costly Avon roughing the passer penalty on a third-and-long kept the drive alive for the Shoremen. The proceeding punt by Avon Lake’s Patrick Beckman looked to turn things around as it placed Avon at its 1-yard line but all it led to was an impressive 99-yard drive by the Eagles, breaking the back of the Shoremen. A few plays later, Avon running back Gerett Choat broke a 67-yard run to place the Eagles right back in scoring position. Shortly after, a Sopko touchdown run from 5 yards out put Avon ahead 15-0.

The Eagles Nest was going absolutely nuts as every break seemed to be going their way.  It would continue for Avon and get worse for Avon Lake.  Moments later, following an Avon safety it was Choat taking a screen pass 54 yards for a touchdown to give Avon a 24-0 lead at the half. It was a blitzkrieg of Eagles offense that saw them score nine points in 19 seconds to close the half.  By the time the bands hit the field and the flag girls started twirling, this one was already over.  A perfect time to stop by the snack stand and get those Krispy Kreme donuts the boosters love to sell.

The only question was how soon Avon would start the running clock on Avon Lake.  In the OHSAA, once a team goes up by 30 in the second half, they start a running clock that only stops on turnovers and scores.

Jake Sopko must have known of that fact because he wasted no time putting the Eagles up 31-0. The Eagles continued the scoring with a 25-yard touchdown pass from Sopko to Heilman to open the second half. The clock would begin to run nonstop from there and the Krispy Kreme donuts were tasting just a bit sweeter in the stands for Eagles faithful.

Avon Lake had to play for pride at that point in which they did as they could not be shut out by their rivals.  Late into the fourth quarter with only a few minutes left, they got on the board with a 8-yard pass from to Carson Toy, avoiding the shutdown in the 31-7 defeat.

Looking back at it, it was my first experience not only with the rivalry but also Avon.  I was blown away with the energy from the crowd and just how much fun it was to cover that game.  I really thought Sopko had a bright future in college, but it would teach me that a great SWC High School Career, doesn’t guarantee success at the NCAA Division One level. And that’s no knock on Jake, the young man was dynamic and humble.  It was just a learning lesson for me personally on the extreme jump in talent from High School to Division 1 college.

Avon Head Coach Mike Elder had a tough choice on his hands coming into the 2016 edition of the cross-town rivalry game for the Silver Rail Trophy. His team ventured to Avon Lake to take on the Shoremen in front of a hostile crowd that was screaming with 45 minutes to go in pre-game warmups on.

The choice for Elder was between staying with the hot hand of sophomore sensation Quarterback Ryan Maloy and continue to rest original starting quarterback Matt Kelly who went down to injury in the preseason. Or, start Matt Kelly and let the senior lead them. Coach went with the senior and it paid off with a 31-7 victory.

Both would get their chance to shine however, and both awarded the coaches faith and led the Eagles to a big win over the Shoremen. Kelly passed for 84 yards on 3 of 6 passing and a TD pass. He also had runs of 4 and 9 yards including a touchdown on the ground, and one in the air.

Malloy went 3 of 5 for 69 yards and ran for a touchdown, Malloy showed off his legs with 43 yards on the ground. He brought the aura of mobility the coach wanted from him.

Helping take the load off of Kelly and continuing to impress was Senior Running Back Mason McLemore who had big shoes to fill after Gerrett Choat graduated the prior year. McLemore ran for 74 yards on 15 attempts. He also scored on a 11-yard catch.  Not to be ignored was Junior running back for Avon, Tony Eberhardt who ran the ball 4 times in the third quarter for a whopping 105 yards and a touchdown.

Coach Elder explained his choice of going with Kelly, but also the choice to split time with Malloy, “Our Senior Matt Kelly had earned that right to be our starting quarterback. He played behind a great player in Jake Sopko for two years and learned behind him. He also led the JV team to back-to-back unbeaten seasons.”

Elder also had high praise for his sophomore back up Malloy, “The kid is one of the most athletic players I have ever coached, and he too earned the playing time we gave him. He brought an added element to the game with his legs and can make any throw on the field.”

Avon Lake Quarterback Matt Pappas was also very active throwing for 149 yards on 16 of 30 attempts, but it wasn’t nearly enough to help the Shoremen. His main target was Carson Toy who finished with 89 yards on 7 catches.

The scoring began in the first quarter when Avon Lake jumped ahead 7-0 on a Carson Toy 1 yard touchdown off of a direct snap to him. The drive was kept alive earlier by a costly pass interference call on the Eagles when it was 3rd and 17 to go for Avon Lake.

The first quarter ended with Avon Lake up 7-0. It was a sloppy quarter that saw each team commit 3 penalties. The first quarter also saw both quarterback’s struggle. Avon QB Matt Kelly went 1 of 4 for 18 yards while Avon Lake QB Mark Pappas went just 3 of 9 for 30 yards.

The Eagles got on the scoreboard early into the second quarter following a blocked punt which gave them the ball at the Avon Lake four-yard line. Elder inserted his versatile sophomore Ryan Maloy to sneak it in for the score. Tying the game at seven a piece.

The Avon Eagles then made the best of a two-minute drive led by sophomore sensation Ryan Maloy to close out the first half with a Mitch Cooper 27-yard field goal as time expired. Cooper had just caught a 45-yard strike from Maloy a play earlier to get them the last second kick with 4 seconds to go. It gave the Eagles a 10-7 lead headed into the half.

Coach Elder went back to his senior to start the second half and it instantly paid off with a 45 yard passing strike to Will Kocar to set up a touchdown run, also by Kelly to give the Eagles a 17 – 7 lead.

Avon would then get the ball right back and march down the field on the strength of 3 runs totaling 72 yards by junior running back Tony Eberhardt to give the Eagles a commanding 24-7 lead. Eberhardt saw his first carries of the game and made the best of them.

Minutes later the Eagles got the ball back and went back on the attack. Ryan Maloy would cap it off with a 11-yard touchdown pass to running back Mason McLemore. This would blow the game open and make it 31-7 Avon over Avon Lake. This brought the third quarter to a close with the Eagles outscoring the Shoremen 21-0 in the frame. The game would finish with the same score.

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