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Playoff experience valuable to returning West Beaver players
Schedule
Coach: Matt Gray
2011 record: 5-5, 5-2
Date Opponent Time
9.1 Neshannock* 12:30
9.7 at OLSH* 7
9.15 Apollo-Ridge* 12:30
9.21 at Union* 7
9.29 Rochester* 12:30
10.6 Laurel* 12:30
10.12 at Sto-Rox* 7
10.20 at Shenango* 7
10.27 South Side Beaver* 12:30
*conference game
Statistical leaders
Passing Eric Blinn*
58-118, 859 yards, 7 TDs
Rushing Dustin Creel*
89-730 yards, 10 TDs
Receiving Creel*
26-426 yards, 5 TDs
*Graduated
• WPIAL track and field championships
• West Mifflin tops Mt. Pleasant for 1st playoff win in 15 years
• Slam carries Greensburg Salem girls over Highlands in playoffs
• Shaler’s Schwartz breaks 2 records at WPIAL championships
By Doug Gulasy
Published: Thursday, August 23, 2012, 6:54 p.m.
Updated: Thursday, August 23, 2012
Western Beaver coach Matt Gray believes postseason experience helps teams in future seasons.
If that's true, the Golden Beavers' back-to-back WPIAL playoff appearances should come in handy this fall.
“It's always nice when you do kind of well for your young guys because it gives them a little bit of extra experience,” Gray said. “They've dealt with it. We're in a really tough conference, and I think last year helps us build for this year.”
The Golden Beavers finished third in the Big 7 Conference before falling to Brentwood, 20-12, in the first round of the playoffs last season.
Two of the top playmakers — Eric Blinn and Eastern Michigan signee Dustin Creel — are gone from that team, but Gray has faith that returning players such as Zach Perry, Billy Drear and Hunter Roknich can pick up the slack.
Western Beaver had a young team overall in 2011, a big reason why Gray believes the playoff experience was so important.
“(The players) know what you're talking about,” Gray said. “If you've never been to the playoffs, they don't understand. It only comes when you experience it — the intensity picks up, everything picks up. If you like that and you like that experience, you want to feel it again, you want to do it again.”
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