Beaver knocks off Avonworth, creates 3-way tie for Western Hills title

By: Chris Harlan


Saturday, October 26, 2024 | 12:26 AM

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Beaver won its first conference title in almost two decades, but coach Cort Rowse didn’t stop to ponder whether that made Friday’s win the biggest in recent history.

“Tonight, it is,” he said.

That’s all that mattered.

Fourth-ranked Beaver forced a three-way tie for the Class 3A Western Hills title with a 34-14 victory over No. 2 Avonworth at Pat Tarquinio Field in the regular-season finale. Beaver’s Qualan Cain rushed for 174 yards and a touchdown, Amari Jackson scored three times and the Bobcats defense was almost flawless in the win.

As a result, Beaver, Avonworth and Central Valley finished as tri-champions in the conference.

The title was Beaver’s first since 2007.

“It’s not where you start; it’s where you finish,” Rowse said. “We’re starting to play some really good ball right now. We’ll worry about those things after we get where we want to go.”

Both teams are qualified for the WPIAL playoffs. The WPIAL will release playoff brackets Saturday.

The loss snapped an 18-game conference winning streak for Avonworth, which was shut out until late in the third quarter.

The teams were meeting for the fifth time in three years, and Beaver had lost the past four. This time, Beaver led 20-0 at halftime and scored again in the third quarter for a 27-point lead.

“Sometimes you take it on the chin, and tonight was one of those nights,” Avonworth coach Duke Johncour said. “We didn’t move the ball offensively, and defensively they wanted it more than we did.”

With Cain at running back and Jackson at wide receiver, Beaver has two playmaking seniors who’ve combined for 42 touchdowns. The return from injury of senior Brady Mayo also was a well-timed boost.

But the key to beating Avonworth this time, Rowse said, was the play of his linemen on both sides of the ball. Rowse said he challenged them early in the week.

“When you play talent vs. talent, it comes down to who’s going to win up front,” Rowse said. “Our guys responded.”

Consider Beaver’s first-half dominance.

The Bobcats led in time of possession by a 2-to-1 margin, keeping Avonworth’s offense largely sidelined. The Antelopes entered averaging 32 points but were held scoreless on 11 first-half plays and 35 yards.

Beaver ran 32 plays for 249 yards, leading to two touchdowns and two field goals.

“The line came to play today,” Cain said. “You saw the score. That’s what happens.”

Beaver scored on all four of its first-half possessions.

“They wanted it more than we did,” Johncour said. “I think we thought we were going to come in and push them around because we have beat them four times.”

Beaver took a 7-0 lead on the opening possession, a 10-play, 70-yard drive ending with an 8-yard touchdown run by Amari Jackson. A 72-yard touchdown run by Cain later in the quarter extended the lead to 14-0.

In the second quarter, freshman kicker Ty Cosky made field goals from 33 and 19 yards for a 20-0 lead.

Jackson caught a 37-yard touchdown on Beaver’s first possession after halftime to lead 27-0. Jackson also scored on a 5-yard run in the fourth quarter.

Avonworth scored with 1:03 left in the third to break the shutout. Billy Onyshko caught a 58-yard touchdown pass. Early in the fourth, Nico Neal scored on a 9-yard run to cut Beaver’s lead to 27-14.

Johncour afterward urged his Antelopes to regroup.

“We’ll play anybody in the playoffs,” he said. “We know we’re going to be one of the top five seeds. We’ll see where the committee puts us.”

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at [email protected].

Tags: Avonworth, Beaver