The Silver Rail Rivalry

The start of the 2020 season was perhaps the craziest in the history of the OHSAA as the world struggled to cope with a pandemic.  It was a wild opening night that saw The Avon Lake Shoremen looking for revenge from last year’s Regional Playoff loss.  COVID 19 had struck the previous March and put the entire 2020 season in jeopardy.  In what seemed like daily press conferences with Governor Mike Dewine, and months of waiting for an answer, football fans finally got their answer in late August as to if they would get their beloved High School Football back in time as sports had been shut down since the spring.  Once Dewine let it be known that high school football would in fact take place, this game instantly became the one on everyone’s mind.

As painful as the wait was to find out if these teams would get a chance to install another edition into the rivalry, it was made even more painful as opening night was accompanied by thunderstorms.  The storms were so bad it actually cancelled games all over Northeast, Ohio and sent soggy fans home from Avon Lake Memorial Stadium.  Well, I should say it sent parents home as no fans were initially allowed in during the covid season, only parents.

Yes, that’s right, the game everyone wanted to see, would have to wait 24 more hours and lead to a once in a lifetime, “Saturday Night Clash” between the two bitter rivals. What wound up happening even furthered the legacy of this great rivalry, and also made Avon Lake fans, players and coaches start to wonder if they were snake bit.

Coach Kostlenik explains how his team handled the delay, “We have a routine whenever we have these types of odd days to prepare for. I think that showed on how fast we came out in the first half. As I tell the kids control the controllable. There was a lot of things out of our control but the boys handled it well. “

In the First quarter, the Avon Lake Shoremen came out firing on all cylinders. Running plays from Mike Corbo and new starting running back Mason Wheeler set the tone for the game early on.  A 62-yard scramble from Corbo, and then capping off the drive was Wheeler with an 8 yard touchdown run.  Wheeler was set to get the bulk of the carries that night as co backfield starter Gage Duesler was out of the lineup.

Up 7-0, the Shoremen punt returner Jared Krakowski rumbled for a 61-yard touchdown and just like that, it was 14-0 and all Shoremen only a few minutes into the game. On the next possession Avon’s senior quarterback Niko Pappas led the Eagles to a touchdown with his legs and with his arm.  Great passes to Mike Matlack, and a 27-yard touchdown catch from Michael Ptacek, put the Eagles on the scoreboard for the first time on the night.  It cut the lead in half and gave the Eagles a chance to stay in it.

On the very next possession the Shoremen answered back with another touchdown when their offensive line created huge holes.  Talented running back Mason Wheeler read the holes beautifully and started producing huge plays.  The drive was capped by a Wheeler 2-yard touchdown run as it just appeared that nothing could stop Wheeler and the Shoremen.

Another drive from the Shoremen late in the first half failed to produce a touchdown, but they salvaged a field goal from Owen Wiley with just 3 seconds left in the half, taking a 24 to 7 lead into the locker room.  Corbo and Wheeler had over one hundred rushing yards each in the half.

Surely, nothing could stop Avon Lake this year, it was a sure thing to be up big 24-7 and running all over the Eagles defense. Welp, that is when fate stepped in and changed everything as mason Wheeler had to be raced to the hospital at halftime with dehydration issues and without Duesler, the Shoremen were suddenly playing to survive, instead of playing to dominate as they had been in the first half. Still up 24-7 with that incredible Shoremen defense, they simply needed to hang on and it seemed more than plausible that they would. They didn’t…….

In the third quarter a couple stalled drives by both teams seemed to favor Avon Lake who was sitting on a big lead.  The Eagles and Pappas kept plugging away and never seemed to panic knowing they had time, and believing in their athletic talent.  This led to a 24-yard field goal with 3:04 left in the third quarter by sure footed Nathanial Vakos and the Shoreman’s lead was now 24 to 10.

Avon’s Niko Pappas used his athletic skills with his arm, and his ability to scramble and create big plays in the fourth quarter.  Even with a tipped ball interception of Pappas by the Shoremen cornerback Mitchell Fedders in the middle of the fourth quarter.  The Eagles believed in their talent and never wavered.

There were no worries as Pappas took over the fourth quarter with big plays capped off by a 30-yard touchdown pass to Senior wide receiver Mike Matlack, who was starting to make a huge difference for the Eagles.  With 5:07 left in the game the Shoremen lead was now down to 24-17.

With costly penalties and mistakes late in the fourth quarter the Shoremen were forced to punt from their own end zone.  Despite a very favorable bounce on the punt, the Eagles had the ball on the home team’s 40-yard line, and momentum seemed to be with them.

With just over three minutes left in the game the Eagles pulled off their first trick play of the game.  A reverse to Mike Matlack surprised the Shoremen and netted a huge 15-yard gain.  The momentum was now with Pappas as he took a sweep left into the end zone with just 1:39 left in the game, tied at 24 apiece.

As remarkable as the comeback was, the Shoremen still had a chance to win it in regulation.  Avon Lake was sparked with a great catch for 43 yards by Jared Krukowski.  Then a scrambling Corbo threw a bullet on the run to Sam Mikolich on the sidelines as he got both feet in for the catch.

This set up a field goal try with just two seconds left on the clock as the Shoremen turned to their All Kee Sports Kicker Owen Wiley.  He was a stud who almost never missed and a 30 yarder was typically a sure thing for the young man.  Except this time as Wiley’s field goal try from 30 yards was bounced off the left upright sending the game into overtime at 24 points apiece after a bad snap caused a slight hiccup in his motion.

In the first overtime both teams appeared to be playing it safe, and both Vakos of Avon and Wiley of Avon Lake were able to convert field goals and the score was now 27-27.  The Shoremen would then have to start the second overtime on offense.   A few penalties would back the Shoremen up before a 39 yard field goal by Owen Wiley put Avon Lake up 30 to 27.  Wiley had rebounded from the fourth quarter miss to make two clutch overtime kicks.  Wiley gave the Shoremen a shot to win as long as the defense could get one stop.  They didn’t……

Niko Pappas, despite two plays of no yardage, threw a sharp pass on third down over the middle to Kam Erskine for the 20-yard overtime touchdown and victory.  Pappas would use this one game to go on to have an amazing season for the Eagles.  He would put up remarkable numbers and just one fourth quarter comeback after another before it was over.  The Eagle’s bench erupted with euphoria as they had pulled off a stunning comeback.

The home team Shoremen were stunned and disappointed. They gave everything they had on the field opening night.  Still, they walked away with a 33-30 overtime loss to crosstown rival Avon in an epic battle.  Some losses sting worse than others and this one did for obvious reasons.

Coach Kostelnik reflects on everything about that wild opening night, “Mason Wheeler was on a tear that night and unfortunately suffering that injury in the second half really hurt our ability to be dynamic on offense in the second half. He was waiting for that moment and he shined.

It was so great to see Michael Corbo step up at the end of the game and lead what could have been a game winning drive. It was disappointing to watch it slip away from him. I think what we saw was his ability to get the job done in a pressure situation.

We lost the ability to be dynamic on offense. Our third RB Sean Summers was really running hard but playing both ways took its toll. Sean is the type of kid you dream of as a coach but he was clearly gassed. We were scrambling to find someone, even running DePaul who had not taken a carry in the game. We are blessed at Avon Lake with fine young men and they proved they wouldn’t quit that night.

In Owen’s Wiley’s defense the snap at the end of regulation had been rolled back to the holder throwing off his timing.  Our starting long snapper was out that night as well. We knew we had something special in Owen and our other players when they refocused to hit the over time field goals. That same snapper stepped in for Owen later on in the year in a crucial situation to seal a game.

Our strategy on defense in that second overtime was to keep the ball in front of us and get after the QB. A split second later and we get a sack as their QB was knocked to the ground. Plain and simple they made a great call, got the match up they wanted, and executed. Hats off to them. My boys played hard and just came up short. “

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