MECHANICSBURG, Pa. — For an Avonworth team that entered the postseason as a No. 5 seed for the WPIAL tournament, there is no shame in taking an undefeated foe all the way down to the wire in one of the greatest state championship games ever played.
Sure, the Antelopes (12-4) fell just short of capturing their first state title, and their heart-pounding 36-33 overtime loss in the PIAA Class 3A championship game against District 11 champion Northwestern Lehigh (16-0) will certainly sting for a long, long time. But for all of Avonworth’s loyal supporters who turned out in frigid temperatures for Saturday’s title game at Cumberland Valley High School, the Lopes’ valiant effort to rally back and force overtime in the dramatic back-and-forth affair will never be forgotten.
“They made the plays when they had to,” said Avonworth coach Duke Johncour. “It was a great, hard-fought game. It’s a shame one team had to lose.”
Eli Zimmerman played the hero for Northwestern Lehigh, as the star senior rushed for 123 yards and three touchdowns to lead his team to victory — none bigger than his walk-off 10-yard TD run in overtime to clinch Northwestern Lehigh’s first state title in school history.
“It was one-on-one with [Zimmerman], a blocker and a defender,” said Northwestern Lehigh coach Josh Snyder. “I’ll take that 10 out of 10 times. … [Zimmerman] deserves and should be the [Class] 3A Player of the Year in Pennsylvania.”
Not to be outdone, Lopes junior Luca Neal put together a game for the ages while operating as Avonworth’s Wildcat quarterback in place of his older brother, Nico, who was forced to miss the game due to a turf toe injury. Luca carried the ball 36 times for 252 yards and four TDs in one of the top individual performances by a WPIAL player in PIAA championship history — but it wasn’t quite enough to carry the Lopes to their first state title.
“This team is pretty special. We’re a family,” Neal said. “I’ll probably [just remember] playing with my brother. … We’ll be back. We’re not done yet.”
Needless to say, this thrilling contest was a much different experience for Avonworth and its supporters than the Lopes’ first state championship appearance. In 2019, Avonworth lost to the mighty Southern Columbia dynasty by a score of 74-7 in the Class 2A final — still the most lopsided game in PIAA championship history.
This time around, the Lopes fought to the bitter end while displaying a ton of heart against another unbeaten opponent — but the end result was just as tough for Johncour and his players to stomach.
“A loss is a loss. They’re all painful,” Johncour said. “Overtime in the state championship — I don’t know if it gets any worse than that.”
The game started off with a bang, as Avonworth marched right down the field on the opening drive before Neal’s 18-yard TD run opened the scoring. That set the tone for a fast-paced first half that saw both teams score at least three points on all three of their possessions, with Northwestern Lehigh taking a 17-16 lead into the half after a 29-yard field goal by Seth Kern.
The second half couldn’t have started much worse for the Lopes, who gave up a touchdown on the opening drive of the third quarter before Neal lost a fumble on Avonworth’s first offensive play of the half. Moments later, Northwestern Lehigh scored again on a 1-yard run by Shane Hulmes to give itself a 14-point cushion.
With all the momentum in Northwestern Lehigh’s favor, the Lopes finally came up with a stop to force their first punt of the game — and all of a sudden, Avonworth’s fierce defensive unit came to life.
“The defense tightened up,” Johncour said. “They played great in the second half.”
Neal rushed for a 54-yard TD on the very next play after the punt to cut the deficit to 30-23, then the Lopes forced another three-and-out on the ensuing possession. After a long drive that chewed up most of the fourth-quarter clock, Avonworth then tied the score on Neal’s 1-yard TD plunge with 4:32 remaining.
“We’re resilient,” Johncour said. “We’re gritty. We fight, we compete, we play hard. Our kids are tough. I’m so proud of their effort today, especially with Nico [Neal] not being able to play.”
Northwestern Lehigh still had a chance to drive down the field for a game-winning score, but an interception by Billy Onyshko gave the ball back to the Lopes with 1:18 left in regulation. Avonworth then inserted quarterback Carson Bellinger into the game in place of Neal, who caught a 14-yard pass from Bellinger to get the Lopes out near midfield. But their last-gasp drive stalled out before reaching field-goal range, and the game went into overtime.
Avonworth got the first crack on offense in the extra period, but the Lopes had to settle for a go-ahead field goal by Calder Mahan. Needing only a touchdown to claim its first state title, Northwestern Lehigh put the ball in Zimmerman’s hands on its first offensive play in overtime, and Zimmerman did the rest.
The rest, of course, is history.
“Last year, we took it a step further and made it here and got thumped by Belle Vernon,” Snyder said about the lessons his team learned a year ago. “We learned a little bit about the media attention. You can’t practice this. You can only experience it. And that experience last year took us from what we put out on the field to an overtime walk-off win.”
Although Avonworth will take no consolation in holding its PIAA runner-up trophy on the bus ride home, the truth is the Lopes made it much further than anybody could have expected when the playoffs began. After posting a 7-3 record in the regular season while finishing in a three-way tie for first place in the Western Hills Conference, Avonworth received a No. 5 seed for the WPIAL playoffs. The Lopes then ran the gauntlet by defeating the No. 12, No. 4, No. 1 and No. 2 seeds in succession, with three upset wins in a row culminating in a 17-0 shutout against Central Valley in the WPIAL Class 3A title game.
Not satisfied with raising just a WPIAL championship banner, Avonworth battled its way to a 16-6 win against previously unbeaten District 6 champion Penn Cambria last week on a snow-covered field at Norwin High School. That sent the Lopes to the state finals for just the second time in school history — and while they are still seeking their first PIAA crown, they will have plenty to be proud of when they look back on all they accomplished this season.
“It was a great game,” Johncour said. “That’s a great football team. A talented football team. They’re 16-0 for a reason. That was the closest game they played in all year. … Kudos to them. They have a great staff, they have a great program, and they came out on top.
“I’ll look back on this with good memories, but it stinks to be on the losing end.”
Steve is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at srotstein@unionprogress.com.
