Kennett bounces back with runaway win over Avon Grove

KENNETT SQUARE >> Nothing helps a team trying shake off its first loss of the season more than big plays from the offense and the defense. Kennett received both at key times of the first half en route to a 35-10 victory over Avon Grove in a Ches-Mont League crossover game Friday.

Sam Forte and Garrett Cox accounted for all five touchdowns as the Blue Demons rebounded convincingly from a defeat at the hands of West Chester East last week.

“We really responded,” Cox said. “We had a great week of practice and we wanted to come out and put last week behind us.”

“We got knocked on our rumps last week,” added head coach Lance Frazier. “We went back to drawing board, being physical, and we got some big plays on both sides of the ball.

The first half was the football version of the Tortoise and the Hare. 

Following a 42-yard return from Kalen Frazier, plus a five-yard facemask penalty, Kennett started on its own 48. On the second play, Cox was stacked up on a handoff, but he bounced out to his left and found daylight to ramble to the Avon Grove 2 before being knocked out of bounds. Three plays later, Forte ran it in from the five for a quick 7-0 lead.

The Red Devils took the grinding overland route to tie the score. Colby Riddell carried the ball five straight times for 18 yards to start that march, which consumed more than seven minutes and 14 plays. Riddell finished off the drive by banging from six yards out.

The response didn’t take long, and it was emphatic. Cox slipped through a hole and sped away from pursuers for an 82-yard dash to make it 14-7.

“I got a little daylight, had some great blocking, and I knew they wouldn’t be able to catch me,” said Cox.

Avon Grove went on another march, 62 yards — 44 of them on the ground — before stalling at the Kennett 7. Bobby Smith came to kick a 25-yard field to cut the deficit to 14-10.

The back-and-forth continued as Kennett used a 10-play drive to extend the lead. Forte recorded his second TD on the ground as the teams combined to score on the fifth straight possession.

Avon Grove tried to answer when the defense swung the pendulum permantly in Kennett’s favor. QB JT McDonald was sacked by Zack Good and fumbled and Kennett recovered at the AG 15. Forte hit Frazier for a TD that was called back on a holding penalty. But, it was a temporary setback. Forte hooked up with Cox from the 13 to go into halftime with a 28-10 advantage.

“It was a huge momentum shift,” Frazier said of the sack and fumble. “It was a big swing and it came at a key time of the game. It woke us up.”

The Red Devils came out and put a worried murmur through the crowd as Riddell rumbled 50 yards to the Kennett 15 on the half’s first play. But, McDonald was under pressure on a 4th-and-6 from the 11, and his pass was batted down in the end zone.

The prettiest score of the game came later in the third as Forte lofted a pass that nestled into the hands of Buzzy Hertz, who cantered in the rest of the way for a 65-yard score.

“Buzzy is a big lanky kid who plays basketball, and when I saw him on a smaller defensive back, I thought I could get it to him,” said Forte. “That play was made pre-snap.

The Red Devils fall to 1-7, while the good times keep rolling for the Blue Demons, who face Great Vallley in their American Division finale.

“It’s crazy,” Cox said on being 7-1. “If you told me three years ago this is where we be, I wouldn’t have believed you.

Notes >> Cox finished with 167 yards on just 10 carries and added 66 yards on four catches. … Riddell paced Avon Grove on the ground with 130 yards on 23 carries. … Sean Glatts collected two interceptions for the Red Devils. Tommy Patrissi had a pick for the Blue Demons. … One number was very prevalent in the first few moments of the game, eight of the initial 10 plays were runs by opposite numbers Riddell and Cox.