Union stifled in shutout loss to Western Beaver
Union (0) vs. Western Beaver (20)
Written: Sep 23, 2013
 By Joe Sager
New Castle News
INDUSTRY — The rain kept coming — and so did Western Beaver.
Both elements stifled the Union High football team Saturday afternoon in a 20-0 loss in a WPIAL Class A Big Seven Conference battle at Western Beaver Stadium.
The Scotties (1-2 conference, 2-2 overall) struggled to stop the Golden Beavers (2-1, 2-2) on the ground and could not muster much on the muddy field.
“We couldn’t get clicking on either side of the ball. They were running it down our throats and we couldn’t sustain blocks to get a drive going. All in all, it was a poor effort all around — coaches and players had a total poor effort,” Union coach Stacy Robinson said. “The way we have to play football, we need a dry track or at least not a steady rain. They played in the same rain we did and they got it done and we didn’t.”
Western Beaver fumbled deep in Scotties territory on its first possession. The hosts got the ball back quickly, though, as they picked off a Union pass three plays later. The Golden Beavers needed three more plays to reach the end zone on Hunter Rokich’s 1-yard plunge.
The hosts boosted their advantage to 13-0 at halftime on Rokich’s 6-yard run. The Scotties saw plenty of Western Beaver’s junior running back as he rushed 22 times for 117 yards in the first half.
“We tried a couple of times to throw the ball early, but it was wet and messy,” Western Beaver coach Matt Gray said. “It’s great to be able to come out and pound the ball and that’s what we did.”
The Golden Beavers kept their approach simple — give the ball to Rokich and run right at Union. He finished with 35 carries for 161 yards.
“This kind of weather is not fun to play in ever. Anything crazy could happen. To get up early and just keep pounding and pounding away and using time on the clock was important,” Gray said. “We controlled the offensive and defensive lines and that was the key. We knew we had to do that and we did it well.”
In addition, the Golden Beavers did not turn the ball over after their initial drive.
“That was the No. 1 important thing that had to be done — not fumble the ball,” Gray said. “We kept two hands on the ball and controlled it.”
Union managed just eight total yards of offense in the first half. The Scotties had a little more success in the second half. They picked up their initial first down in the third quarter, but still had trouble sustaining any drives.
Penalties also halted any momentum the Scotties started to gain. They were whistled nine times for 75 yards.
“We had some of the most inopportune penalties and strange calls, at times,” Robinson said. “It frustrates you, but you have to go be good enough to overcome it.”
The Golden Beavers put the game out of reach with Billy Drear’s 1-yard TD run in the fourth quarter.
Union returns home Friday for a big conference battle against Laurel.
“There’s no need to cry about this because no one is going to have any sympathy for us,” Robinson said. “Hopefully, our guys will respond and get ready for another Big Seven battle Friday night.”
UNION W. BEAVER
5 First downs 13
106 Yards Rushing 268
25 Yards Lost 13
81 Net Rushing 255
10 Passes Attempted 3
4 Passes Completed 2
1 Passes Intercepted 0
24 Yards Passing 24
105 Total Yards 279
3-1 Fumbles-Lost 1-1
5-38.2 Punts-Average 1-27
9-75 Penalties-Yards 7-50
UNION 0 0 0 0 — 0
W. BEAVER 7 6 0 7 — 20
Scoring plays
WESTERN BEAVER — Hunter Roknich, 1-yard run (Gary Smith kick).
WESTERN BEAVER — Roknich, 6-yard run (kick failed).
WESTERN BEAVER — Billy Drear, 1-yard run (Smith kick).
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