104 • TRIB TOTAL MEDIA
Coach: Ryan Matsook
2019 record: 7-3, 4-3 in
Class 2A Midwestern Conference
All-time record: 295-250-6
SCHEDULE
Date Opponent Time
9.11 at South Side* 7
9.19 at Beaver 7:30
10.3 Seton LaSalle* 12:30
10.9 at Brentwood* 7
10.16 at Sto-Rox* 7
10.24 Carlynton* 12:30
THREE RIVERS • WESTERN BEAVER ELIAS BISHOP
*CONFERENCE GAME
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing Xander LeFebvre
39-204, 783 yards, 8 TDs
Receiving Noah Gray*
29-479 yards, 2 TDs
Rushing Cam Irvine*
73-393 yards, 5 TDs
*GRADUATED
FAST FACTS
• Western Beaver will have 15
players from Lincoln Park this
season as a part of their coop
agreement.
• The Golden Beavers are
looking to make their second
playoff appearance in the last
three years.
• Ryan Matsook coached 11
seasons at Beaver Falls and
has compiled a career record
of 101-26 and three WPIAL
championship appearances.
• As a sophomore, Thad
Gray started a few games at
quarterback last season. He
completed 27 passes for 377
yards and 5 TDs.
AUSTIN JONES
CHAMPIONSHIP COACH
GUIDES WESTERN BEAVER
The last time Western Beaver
athletic director and assistant
principal Ryan Matsook found
himself on the sidelines as a high
school football coach was in 2016.
He was dressed in black and
orange and he was at the helm of
a Beaver Falls team that only lost
one game all season and scored an
average of 33.6 points per game
on its way to winning WPIAL and
PIAA Class 3A titles.
Since that season, Matsook has
spent time in his current positions
17 miles to the south of his old
school, and he never really had
that itch to return to the sidelines.
But when Western Beaver found
itself without a head coach after
first-year head coach Derek Moye
had to resign for work-related reasons,
Matsook stepped in to help.
“When Derek stepped down, a lot
of the guys on the staff were guys
that I knew and they came out and
wanted to be on Derek’s staff,” Matsook
said. “We as a district wanted
to keep the continuity, and we felt
like we didn’t want to start from
scratch again. So, I stepped up and
said you know what, as the athletic
director, I’m going to do what I
have to do to keep continuity here.”
The Golden Beavers will have a
lot of experience returning from
a team that went 7-3 and missed
out on the playoffs by just one
game last season. They only lost
six seniors, so Matsook has several
players returning that logged significant
minutes on Friday nights.
He couldn’t be happier about it.
“I’m lucky to step into the situation
I have, so I have to give
credit to the two previous coaches
because they really put a structure
in place,” Matsook said. “I was
able to step into it and just kind of
enhance from the things that I see.
So, it’s been a big luxury to have
kids that understand what it’s like
to be on the field on Friday nights.”
That experience comes back
in bunches as Matsook has eight
starters returning on offense and
nine on defense. After a few weeks
of voluntary workouts, the veteran
coach came to believe defense may
be the team’s strength heading into
the season.
The Golden Beavers allowed 18.1
points per game last season and
only allowed Neshannock and Riverside,
which were two of their
losses, to score 30 points of more.
“We all look good in shorts, but
we are just trying to establish an
identity and kids are trying to
understand their roles,” Matsook
said. “We played really good defense
last year, and we have nine
starters back there. So, if I had to
pick a strength, I would say our
defense, so we can lean on those
guys while our offense catches up.”
Offensively, the Golden Beavers
would like to be balanced this season
and with the tools they have,
that’s exactly what they could do.
Matsook said sophomore Xander
LeFebvre and senior Austin Hall
were competing for the quarterback
position during camp.
LeFebvre saw time under center
last season, completing 39 passes
for 666 yards and five touchdowns.
Junior Thad Gray will step in at
running back, and Matsook will
have plenty of athletes in the receiving
core to stretch the field.
“We have the background of
running the ball, but we certainly
aren’t afraid to throw it,” Matsook
said. “We have Elias Bishop, a
returning starter, who is 6-3, and
you have Dakari Bradford, who
is a returning starter at 6-4 with
other guys sprinkled in there like
Levi Gray and Aaron Smith just to
name a few. So, we have the capability
to throw if we want.”
No matter who they place on
the field, the Golden Beavers are
looking to take another step this
season, and with the experience
they have returning, they are hoping
to make a playoff appearance.
“We have a lot of kids who saw a
lot of time on a pretty competitive
team,” Matsook said. “We are just
hoping to smooth it out, kind of
trim the fat and hopefully get into
the playoffs this year, which would
be nice.”
by GREG MACAFEE