Francis scores 6 touchdowns as Avon Grove runs over Octorara

EAST FALLOWFIELD >> For the Avon Grove football team, the formula to Friday’s lopsided nonleague 56-0 win over Octorara was quite simple: Give the ball to running Kevin Francis and let him do the damage.

Francis was destructive to the Braves’ defense all evening long, finishing the with 184 yards on 23 attempts and six touchdowns. Francis’ elusiveness was on full display, dodging every defender that threatened to end one of his runs prematurely.

Francis used cuts, power and grace to put defenders at his mercy.

Francis recognized that a dominant performance from Avon Grove’s offensive line was what enabled him to have such a strong showing.

“It’s all on them,” Francis said of his front seven. “They made me the holes and all I had to do was run through them. They work their butts off every week, but they were really good tonight.”

Francis scored on short runs of 8, 1, 3, 6, 5 and 2 yards

Francis shouldered most of the offensive load, but Avon Grove was furnished with some key contributions from other players as well.

Kyri Rossiter relieved Francis of his duties at running back, and managed to rush for 37 yards and one touchdown.

Quarterback Shane Wolford didn’t have to throw much — he completed three of six passes for 53 yards.

For Octorara, the Braves were stymied by an active and alert Avon Grove defense, registering only 122 total yards of offense.

Braves quarterback Trent Pawling agreed with Francis’ sentiment that Avon Grove’s offensive line was the biggest influence on their win, and also credited their defense for stepping up in a big way.

“Their lineup front was just killing ours,” he said. “On defense, they flew to the ball and we couldn’t get anything going (on offense).”

Pawling also said he looks forward to his team’s next series of practices to help the guys regroup and recalibrate from the loss.

“We’ve got to come back to practice and have a hard week of practice,” said Pawling.

While the lead stood at an insurmountable margin when the fourth quarter started, Avon Grove put an exclamation point on its win as Alex Wank intercepted a pass with 5:52 remaining in the final frame.

Francis promised that Avon Grove won’t invest too much in a win like this, and is determined to remain focused heading into next week’s showdown with West Chester East.

“We practice hard all week, get ready and get prepared for West Chester East.”