After the regular season ended for the SHS football team, they, like any other team, looked to advance on the road to the state championship. SHS drew a first round bye and then ended up playing the Avon Orioles on Oct. 27 for the second round of sectionals.

Unfortunately for the Cards, their season came to an end as Avon’s offense dominated SHS’ defense, ending in a score of 33-2.

In the first half, the Cards’ defense actually put up a good fight. They held Avon to just one touchdown and produced the only points on the board for SHS in the form of a safety.

After halftime, the Cards came out flat and the Orioles walked all over them, making it apparent how they are ranked fifth in the state (according to Maxpreps). Avon’s offensive powerhouse, which includes two division-one players, scored 26 out of their 33 points in the third quarter.

“(Avon’s) offense is really explosive,” SHS head football coach Brandon Winters said. “They’re one of those teams that seems to get a lot of really big plays…  We tried to keep them from having big plays and didn’t do a good enough job.”

In addition to the sub-par defense, SHS’ offense couldn’t get off the ground. The closest the Cards came to scoring was on their first offensive possession; but Avon stopped them inside the five-yard-line on fourth-and-goal. Other than that, every offensive possession for SHS ended in a punt with the exception of one which ended in an interception.

With this being the last game of the year, it was a tough one for the seniors. Many tears were shed on the sidelines as the last seconds on the clock dwindled away and seniors soaked in their last moments on the team.

“(It was) very, very emotional,” senior Kris Massey said. “I thought we were going to win coming out of halftime… Guess that wasn’t the case for us today.”