WPIAL Class 2A final notebook: Avonworth doesn’t have to share trophy this time around

By: George Guido
Saturday, November 23, 2019 | 4:10 PM

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Avonworth is now 1-1-1 in WPIAL titles games after Saturday’s 28-6 victory in the Class 2A final over Washington at Norwin High School.

The Antelopes tied Union Area, 13-13, in the 1959 title game at Geneva College’s Reeves Stadium and dropped a 26-14 decision to Clairton in 2014 at Heinz Field.

Avonworth is now 16-17-1 in the WPIAL playoffs and will enter the PIAA tournament for the first time next weekend against Wilmington at a site, date and time to be determined.

Jax was not lax

Senior Jax Miller had an odd scoring line of four 1-yard touchdown runs. On the game, he had 43 carries for 291 yards.

Miller now has 2,228 yards and 29 touchdowns on the season. The 6-foot-1, 183-pound senior has 176 points.

He went over the 2,000-yard mark in the first period on a 20-yard run to the Washington 1. Avonworth opened the second half the same way it did in the semifinals against Riverside with Miller working out of the wildcat formation on a 13-play drive that ate up the first 7 minutes, 39 seconds on the third quarter.

The Antelopes didn’t punt Saturday.

Stellar ‘D’

After the Riverside game, Miller said Avonworth had the best defense in the WPIAL. It might be hard to argue after Saturday’s performance.

The Antelopes held the Prexies to two first downs in the first half and 39 net offensive yards. Washington didn’t run a play in Avonworth territory until the two minute-mark of the third quarter.

The Prexies, however, avoided their first playoff shutout in 10 years with the late score by Zach Swartz.

Washington was shut out, 27-0, in the first round of the 2009 Class 2A playoffs. It marked the final win in Center’s football history before it merged with Monaca to form Central Valley.

Milestone season

Even with the loss, it’s been another outstanding season in Washington’s glorious history.

The 13-1 Prexies now have 710 victories all-time and a 44-28-1 record in their WPIAL playoff history. They are 5-8-1 in the finals. The tie was a 0-0 stalemate with Johnstown in 1917 and two others were won by acclimation for seven titles.

The school completed its 20th regular season undefeated several weeks back. That’s one behind Jeannette’s all-time WPIAL mark.

Zach Swartz finished his outstanding career with 6,202 passing yards, 15th in WPIAL history.

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Avonworth 28, Washington 6

Avonworth 7-7-7-7 — 28

Washington 0-0-0-6 — 6

How they scored:

A: Jax Miller 1 run (Tyler Bryan kick)

A: Miller 1 run (Bryan kick)

A: Miller 1 run (Bryan kick)

A: Miller 1 run (Bryan kick)

W: Zach Swartz 5 run (pass failed)

Team statistics:

Avonworth Washington

First downs 19 11

Rushes-yards 50-291 33-121

Passing yds. 29 32

Passes-Att-Comp 7-3-1 13-5-0

Total Off. Plays 57-320 46-153

Punts (No. Avg) 0-0, 4-39.8

Fumbles-lost 2-1 2-1

Penalties 4-40, 4-22

Possession time 27:27 20:33

Individual statistics:

Rushing: A: Jax Miller 43-291-4, Ian Syam 4-22, Park Penrod 2-(minus-21), Kevin Felter 1-(minus-12), Alex Ifft 1-(minus 5); W: Zach Swartz 19-61, Michael Allen 10-54, Amari Miller 1-11, Zahmere Robinson 2-0.

Passing A: Penrod 3-5-29, Miller 0-2-0 W: Swartz 5-13-32

Receiving A: Drew Harper 1-15, Theo Newhouse 1-12, Jordan Rapp 1-2; W: Caleb 4-32, Robinson 1-0

Tags: Avonworth, Washington