By: Ray Fisher
Sunday, January 15, 2023 | 11:01 AM

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Quaker Valley senior Jakub Pickett has made a name for himself on the football field.

Opposing coaches and players have noticed.

Pickett, a 6-foot-2, 190-pound wide receiver/defensive back, repeated as a first-team all-conference selection on offense this year.

“Jakub has many strengths as a football player,” QV coach Jason Cappa said. “He has the intangibles that make him a great leader, teammate and player on any team. On the field, he has great football IQ and is always ready for the next play. As a receiver, he has very good speed, great hands and is aggressive going after the football.

“Jakub has a positive attitude in any situation and has a personality that makes everyone like him. He is always looking for ways to affect other people around him.”

QV quarterback Troy Kozar passed for 725 yards during the 2022 season, and Pickett accounted for most of the team’s receiving yardage. Pickett caught 27 passes for 490 yards (18.1 yards per reception).

“Jakub was my go-to receiver, for sure,” said Kozar, a senior. “I had a ton of confidence when passing to him. Outside of football, we are really tight, so we bond well already, and football was the same way.

“We would go to the field to get in extra work, and we worked on in-game scenarios to get used to making plays.”

A four-year starter, Pickett led the Quakers in receiving both as a junior and senior and was a starter in the defensive secondary both years.

During his senior season, the athletic wideout caught five passes for a school-record 163 yards and two touchdowns on Sept. 16 in his team’s 40-22 conference win against Seton LaSalle.

“Jakub put in a lot of work in the offseason in preparation for his senior year,” Cappa said. “Outside of Quaker Valley football workouts, he was also working with a receivers coach and a speed trainer. So, when Jakub broke the single-game receiving record, I was not surprised at all.”

Pickett is planning to continue his education and play college football and has received interest from multiple schools. He is being recruited by the likes of Cal (Pa.), Clarion and Edinboro at the Division II level, along with Division III schools Washington & Jefferson, Westminster and others.

“Jakub has been doing a great job researching schools that will not only be a great fit on the football field but match his educational interests,” Cappa said. “Whichever school is lucky enough to sign him, they are going to get a student-athlete that will far exceed their expectations of a football player, student and wonderful person.

“Jakub will undoubtedly be successful wherever he chooses to continue his academic and athletic career.”

The 6-1, 180-pound Kozar received honorable mention consideration for the Trib HSSN Football Player of the Week honor with his performance against Seton LaSalle. He completed 12 of 23 passes for 237 yards and TD passes of 5, 50 and 35 yards, the last two to Pickett. He also scored on runs of 50 and 2 yards.

Kozar currently is a starting guard on the Quaker Valley boys basketball team, the defending WPIAL Class 4A champion. Kozar and junior guard Joseph Coyle led QV to a 59-55 section win Jan. 6 against West Mifflin with a pair of 18-point performances.

“For having a very young and inexperienced team, I think we’re doing well creating good team chemistry,” Kozar said. “It always takes time when you’re not used to playing much in varsity since it’s such a different level, so we are adjusting quickly to work out the kinks.

“We’ve started the year off pretty strong and we are only looking to improve.”

The Quakers are aiming to successfully defend their WPIAL title on the hardwood this season.

“We really have set some high expectations for ourselves,” Kozar said. “Our goals are to make the playoffs and compete at a high level all season and contend for the WPIAL title. We also have plans to make the state playoffs. No matter the circumstances, we are just going to focus on playing well as a team and win games.

“Coach (Mike) Mastroianni instills a next-game-up approach for us and makes sure we never get too down on ourselves when things aren’t going our way. All in all, we’re very excited for the rest of the season.”

Three other all-conference players for the QV football team were senior running back Gavin Eshenbaugh, senior offensive lineman Abe Djedid and sophomore linebacker Dominic Cox-Giles. All three were honorable mention selections.

By: Tribune-Review
Sunday, October 16, 2022 | 11:01 AM

The rebuilding campaign in the Quaker Valley football program has hit a few snags.

The Quakers have sat out the postseason for the past three years. Jason Cappa took over as field boss and the hope was the team would take a step forward in anticipation of a possible playoff push.

Cappa inherited a program that had gone 9-25 since winning WPIAL and PIAA championships in 2017.

But things haven’t been anything close to rosy since the Quakers defeated Seton LaSalle, 40-22, in their Class 3A Western Hills Conference opener.

South Side Beaver, Hopewell and South Park handed the Quakers decisive losses, dropping QV to 1-5 overall and 1-2 in the conference.

Nonetheless, Cappa and his staff aren’t discouraged. QV’s first-year head coach offered an philosophical perspective to the Quakers’ season.

“We acknowledge our wins and losses but don’t judge the value of our team or our growth from just those numbers,” Cappa said. “Like I said in the preseason, we are looking to develop ourselves individually and as a team in terms of how we compete and develop our fundamentals.

“When taking over a team where the previous years had a low number of players, our team is still learning how to compete every day in practice. We are able to have offensive, defensive and special team scout teams in practice this season. We have also played JV games. Our young and inexperienced players are getting valuable varsity, JV and practice reps that will result in the positive development of our team.”

The highlight of the season for the Quakers was their 18-point victory in their home opener Sept. 16 against Seton LaSalle.

Senior quarterback Troy Kozar connected on 12 of 23 passing attempts for 237 yards and threw scoring strikes of 5, 50 and 35 yards, the last two to senior wide receiver Jakub Pickett.

Kozar also scored on runs of 50 and 2 yards and received honorable mention consideration in the Trib HSSN Football Player of the Week voting.

Through seven games, Kozar completed 45 of 99 passes for 606 yards, five touchdowns with eight interceptions. He also scored twice on the ground.

“We have great leadership from our upperclassmen who are mentoring our younger players in a positive way,” Cappa said. “We have done a lot of things this year that are brand new to every player on the team in terms of our practice schedule, our weight room and recovery schedule, and our daily routine.

“Our returning players, such as Jakub Pickett (WR/DB), Abe Djedid (OL/DE) and Ethan Pesce (OL/DL), are playing at a high level, which was expected. They show up every day bringing a positive attitude. They never shy away from a challenge and have stepped up when we need them in games

“Newcomers who are seniors, such as Troy Kozar (QB), Evan Ray (OL/DL) and Christian Brown (ATH/DB), have taken leadership roles while also standing out in every game they play. One of the main reasons these players are doing so well is that they committed themselves to our offseason program.”

Pickett caught five passes for a school-record 163 yards and two touchdowns against Seton LaSalle.

Through seven games, the 6-foot-2, 180-pound wideout led the team in receiving and scoring with 23 catches for 448 yards and seven touchdowns, an average of 19.5 yards per reception. He also tacked on 162 yards on 12 rushing attempts, good for a 13.5 yards-per-rush average.

A four-year starter, Pickett led the Quakers in receiving as a junior and was a first-team all-conference selection.

“Our players show up every day with a positive attitude to get better, compete, work together as one and with a common goal: to improve,” Cappa said. “We have players standing out individually in the statistics, but we are working to get all 11 players to do their job with success at the same time.”

While the Quakers are a young group, they also have been decimated by injuries this season.

“We have not played a single game this season at full strength,” Cappa said. “I’ve never seen so many injuries on a team like we have had this year. We don’t make excuses. We control only what we can control. Our goal is to continue working and learning to be better football players while learning how to work together and finish strong.

“We are not looking at the path but looking at the process and what we can do each day to improve. We are always talking about controlling only what we can control. We will continue taking advantage of our playmakers while developing our other players to compete at a higher level then where they started. We are trying to put players in position where they can be successful while also keeping the team-first mentality.”

There are 10 seniors, eight juniors, eight sophomores and 10 freshmen listed on the QV roster.

“We have a very competitive freshmen class who are holding their own in practice and JV games that offer a positive to what the future looks like for QV football,” Cappa said.

Quaker Valley ends its regular season with three conference tests. Following an away game at West Mifflin, the Quakers host Beaver on Oct. 21 then close out their schedule Oct. 28 at Avonworth.

“Our coaches and senior leaders and captains have done a great job keeping players positive when they come to practice while also demanding everyone’s best efforts,” Cappa said. “I couldn’t be prouder of the leadership we have and the support we have. It would be easy to quit and not show up.

“There’s no doubt our players and coaches will finish what we started. We will keep working.”

By: Ray Fisher
Sunday, November 6, 2022 | 11:01 AM

Here are a few Quaker Valley individual football highlights from the second half of the regular season:

• Gavin Eshinbaugh rushed for an even 100 yards in a Week 8 loss to Beaver. Eshinbaugh is a 5-foot-10, 185-pound senior running back.

• Troy Kozar hit the century mark in the passing department against West Mifflin in Week 7. Kozar, a 6-foot, 180-pound senior quarterback, completed 11 of 26 passes.

• Kozar’s favorite target this year was 6-2, 190-pound senior WR Jakub Pickett, who actually rushed for 111 yards against South Park in Week 6.

By: Ray Fisher
Sunday, November 20, 2022 | 11:01 AM

The exit interviews have been taking place within the Quaker Valley football program.

Recordwise, it proved to be a disappointing 2022 season for the Quakers. After starting out 2-1 under first-year coach Jason Cappa, QV lost its last six games all by wide margins.

“The team’s first order of business is getting a list of players who are playing winter sports and who are not involved in a winter sport. I encourage my players to participate in multiple sports. There’s no substitute for competition,” Cappa said. “The players who are not involved in a winter sport will use our offseason program as their sport to keep up with academic and athletic improvement.

“We have completed exit interviews with the players to talk about the season we just completed and the goals we have individually and as a team moving forward.”

Overall, the Quakers finished 1-8 and were 1-5 in the Class 3A Western Hills Conference. Avonworth won the conference with a 6-0 record, followed by Beaver, West Mifflin and South Park all tied for second at 4-2. Hopewell ended up 2-4 and was trailed by QV and Seton LaSalle.

Statistically, QV was led by seniors Troy Kozar, Gavin Eshinbaugh, Jacob Pickett and Christian Brown.

Kozar, a 6-foot, 180-pound quarterback, accounted for 845 total yards this season. He passed for 725 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another 120 yards.

Kozar’s favorite targets were the 6-2, 190-pound Pickett, who had 27 receptions for 490 yards, and the 5-6, 130-pound Brown, with 12 receptions for 117 yards.

Pickett caught five passes for a school-record 163 yards and two touchdowns in a 40-22 conference win against Seton LaSalle.

A four-year starter, Pickett led the Quakers in receiving both as a junior and senior.

Eshenbaugh, a 5-10, 185-pound running back, paced QV in the rushing department.

Cappa said the Quakers’ returning players this season, such as Pickett (WR/DB), Abe Djedid (OL/DE) and Ethan Pesce (OL/DL), competed at a high level while senior newcomers, including the likes of Kozar (QB), Evan Ray (OL/DL) and Brown (ATH/DB), assumed individual leadership roles.

“They show up every day bringing a positive attitude,” Cappa said. “They never shy away from a challenge.”

Following a brief rest period, the Quakers plan to embark on a vigorous offseason conditioning program.

“We are working on developing football players through a strenuous offseason program that is geared to make us bigger, faster and stronger,” Cappa said. “The offseason is where championships are won.

“We have to improve in all areas from offense to defense to special teams. We also need to improve our player development. We have coaches in place that specialize in speed, strength and athletic performance of athletes. Having a full year to work with our kids will be very beneficial to our football players.”

Cappa also will be on the lookout to recruit QV athletes not currently in the football program. The Quakers had the smallest roster in the conference.

There were 36 players listed on this year’s roster, including 10 seniors and 10 freshmen and eight juniors and eight sophomores.

By comparison, Beaver started out the season with 57 players and Avonworth had 53.

“Our goal this offseason is to also to continue recruiting the athletes in the school who are not in a fall sport to join our football family,” said the philosophical Cappa. “We had many seniors join the team this past season who did not play last year. We want to continue inviting the top athletes in the school to be a part of building a championship program.”

There were some positive achievements attained by players and the team in 2022.

“Some of the positives were the small victories we had as a program,” Cappa said. “We had 100% academic eligibility. We had Saturday varsity workouts and JV games for the first time in a while. We also had some record-breaking performances.”

The Quakers were hampered by injuries throughout the season, which can prove disastrous to a team with less than 40 players.

“An obvious disappointment for us was our win and loss record,” Cappa said. “Another disappointment was the amount of injuries we had to endure. We had 19 first-year players. The week after our victory in Week 4, we had eight starters standing in street clothes due to injury.

“We need to do a better job in the weight room getting stronger for a couple reasons — first for injury prevention, and second, so we don’t get pushed around physically by other teams.”

Avonworth, Beaver, West Mifflin and South Park all won at least one game in the WPIAL playoffs.

“There are no losses, only lessons,” Cappa said. “We learned a lot this season. We see what it takes to compete with all of the great teams in our conference.”

Another step the Quakers need to take is to raise their own level of expectation. QV sat out the postseason for four consecutive years, and the team’s coaching staff inherited a program that had gone 9-25 since winning WPIAL and PIAA titles in 2017.

“My expectations are always the same,” Cappa said, “to compete at a high level with ourselves and versus others. We must learn to raise our level of expectations to be champions individually and learn how to get others around us competing at the same level. We have student-athletes at this school who know how to compete for championships.

“Our expectations have been the same since Day 1: Teach fundamentals, train to become better athletes and football players, teach our players to compete at a championship level and build positive relationships within our program.”

Noah Hiles

Beaver County Times

7/18/22

As the 2022 WPIAL high school football season approaches, the Beaver County Times' sports staff is kicking off its preseason coverage with a list of the top players in the area. From Division I recruits to all-state talents, there will be plenty of exciting stars that take the field on Friday nights in the Beaver Valley. Throughout the week, we will be ranking the top 40 players in The Times' coverage area. We start our list with numbers 40 through 31.

38. Jakob Pickett, Quaker Valley

Position: Wide receiver/Defensive back

Graduation Year: 2023

Height: 6-foot-2

Weight: 190 pounds

About: As Quaker Valley continues to rebuild, it will rely upon big efforts from talented upperclassmen like Pickett to help the program return to prominence. The Quakers' pass-catcher hauled in four touchdowns last fall, helping him earn first-team Northwestern Six Conference all-star honors. Pickett was also a force on the defensive side of the ball, ending the year as one of Quaker Valley's top tacklers.

Noah Hiles

Beaver County Times

7/18/22

As the 2022 WPIAL high school football season approaches, the Beaver County Times' sports staff is kicking off its preseason coverage with a list of the top players in the area. From Division I recruits to all-state talents, there will be plenty of exciting stars that take the field on Friday nights in the Beaver Valley. Throughout the week, we will be ranking the top 40 players in The Times' coverage area. We start our list with numbers 40 through 31.

38. Jakob Pickett, Quaker Valley

Position: Wide receiver/Defensive back

Graduation Year: 2023

Height: 6-foot-2

Weight: 190 pounds

About: As Quaker Valley continues to rebuild, it will rely upon big efforts from talented upperclassmen like Pickett to help the program return to prominence. The Quakers' pass-catcher hauled in four touchdowns last fall, helping him earn first-team Northwestern Six Conference all-star honors. Pickett was also a force on the defensive side of the ball, ending the year as one of Quaker Valley's top tacklers.

Joshua Carney

Beaver County Times

8/26/22

Freedom 24, Quaker Valley 12: Quarterback Ty Schultheis threw two touchdown passes and running back Damian Grunnagle rushed for 126 yards on 19 carries, leading the Freedom Area Bulldogs to a season-opening 24-12 win over Quaker Valley Friday night at Jimbo Covert Field.

Schultheis completed 3-of-6 passes for 53 yards and found receivers Matt Schultheis and Dekota Roberts for scores through the air, helping Quaker Valley jump out to a 17-0 lead over Quaker Valley before holding on in the fourth quarter for the two-score win.

Freedom's Tyler Welsh added 63 yards and a touchdown on the ground on 14 carries, scoring from 10 yards out in the fourth quarter. Ty Schultheis found Matt Schultheis for a 31-yard strike in the first quarter before kicker Garrett Drutarsky made a 41-yard field goal to give the Bulldogs a 10-0 lead at the half.

In the fourth quarter, Quaker Valley mounted a comeback as Dom Cox-Giles returned an interception 53 yards for a score, and wide receiver Jakub Pickett hauled in a 28-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Logan Benedict to cap the scoring for the Quakers.

Freedom Area (1-0) is set to host Ambridge (0-1) Sept. 2 in Week 1, while Quaker Valley (0-1) is scheduled to travel to Mohawk.

Top performers — 

Quaker Valley

Logan Benedict, QB: 5-of-6 passing, 54 yards, one touchdown

Jakub Pickett, WR: three catches, 42 yards, one touchdown

Christian Brown, WR: three catches, 35 yards

Freedom

Damian Grunnagle, RB: 19 carries, 126 yards; 10 tackles

Ty Schultheis, QB: 3-of-6 passing, 53 yards, two touchdowns

Tyler Welsh, RB: 14 carries, 63 yards, one touchdown

Noah Hiles

Beaver County Times

8/9/22

With the 2022 high school football season just weeks away, every team throughout the Beaver Valley is hard at work, preparing to have the most successful fall possible. In theory, the pinnacle of achievement for every team in the WPIAL would be making it to Acrisure Stadium for the District 7 final. However, those who know high school football understand that the term "success" can mean different things for different programs.

Each of the 19 teams in the Times' coverage area has a top goal they hope to achieve. Over the next few weeks, the Times' sports staff will be providing in-depth analysis for each club, giving a detailed look on what their strengths, weaknesses and goals are.

But for now, in this story, we're going to keep things simple. As Week 0 of the 2022 WPIAL football season approaches, here is every team in the area's mentality to the year ahead in three words or less.

COMPETE

Ellwood City ― There isn't a single player on Ellwood City's roster that knows what it's like to win a varsity football game. After three years of losing, a new head coach and a group of experienced players will look to change that. The hiring of Dan Bradley gives the Wolverines a reason to be optimistic. The championship winning head coach has turned around numerous programs before, with OLSH being his most recent. Ellwood City will without question be his toughest test. Just one win in 2022 will be huge for his program moving forward.

Quaker Valley ― Quaker Valley's situation isn't quite as bad as Ellwood City's ― the Quakers won a game last fall over Brentwood and were just a victory over Ambridge away from reaching the postseason. However, since winning the PIAA Class 3A title in 2017, Quaker Valley's football program has struggled to avoid last place in any conference it's played in. New head coach Jason Cappa will hope to bring a new mentality to a club that he's familiar with. As we saw last year, just a few wins could mean a playoff berth in Class 3A. With most of its roster back, the postseason could be a goal for Quaker Valley, but a more realistic one would be to simply compete each Friday night contest.

Ethan Morrison

Special to the Times

9/19/22

Every Monday, the Beaver County Times will recognize both individual athletes and teams for their impressive performances that took place in the last week of high school sports action. Here are the standout efforts from the week of Sept. 12.

Football

Jakub Pickett, Quaker Valley

Pickett had a record-breaking performance in the Quakers' 40-22 win over Seton LaSalle Friday night as he broke Quaker Valley’s single-game receiving record, hauling in five passes for 163 yards and two touchdowns. Pickett’s performance broke a record that stood for seven seasons, when Chris Conlan tallied 160 yards receiving in 2014.

Noah Hiles

Beaver County Times

8/17/22

LEETSDALE — While he's already a teacher within the Quaker Valley School District, perhaps Jason Cappa should consider adding "varsity football 100" to his curriculum this fall.

In his first year as the Quakers' head coach, Cappa, who was an assistant with the team last year, will have a few more challenges than other newly hired coaches in the area. Although his group's roster size of 37 is something he and his staff are excited about, more than half of his players are newcomers to high school football.

"We have about 12 or 13 guys back from last year," Cappa said. "The rest either didn't play football last fall or are freshmen. Anytime you take over a program, you kinda want to clean the slate, which is easy to do here."

With a clean slate, Cappa and his staff were able to begin building from the ground up this summer. Although the Quakers return a few key players, it was made clear early on that no spots were reserved in the starting lineup.

"When we let them know every position is open for competition, that's real," Cappa said. "No matter if it was a senior or a freshman, everyone understood that they were competing for a starting spot, which has created some very healthy competition."

Compete will be the key word for Quaker Valley in 2022. Last season, the Quakers just missed out on the fourth and final playoff spot out of the Northwestern Six Conference. While it hasn't been too long ago since Quaker Valley was winning big postseason battles, the program has a much different look since winning the Class 3A state championship in 2017.

Cappa says the ultimate goal is to get the program back to that level. In order to do that, his team will look to improve each day from here until the final buzzer of their 2022 campaign sounds.

Coach: Jason Cappa (First year, 0-0)

2021 Record: 2-8 (1-4 in the Northwestern Six Conference)

Top players lost: Patrick Cutchember, Connery Bulger, Mason Diemert, Nate Dicks, Tommaso Floro

Top returning players: Jakub Pickett, Abe Djedid, Gavin Eshenbaugh, Ethan Pesce, Zack Djedid

Offense: Three newcomers will look to earn the starting job under center for Quaker Valley. Seniors Troy Kozar and Kodee Madann are getting most of the reps in camp, despite neither being on the team last fall. Cappa added that freshman Logan Benedict is another player in the mix at quarterback. Senior Gavin Eshenbaugh returns as a starter in the Quakers' backfield and will be joined by Madann and Jack Diemert. Diemert will also be heavily featured in Quaker Valley's passing attack, which is headlined by all-conference receiver Jakub Pickett. Christian Brown is another newcomer who Cappa is high on at wide out. Nick Danko and Dom Cox-Giles will be versatile tools for Quaker Valley at tight end. Up front, Abe Djedid, Zack Djedidm and Ethan Pesce return as starters while Aidan Fair, Bryson Williams, Evan Ray and Kris Brown compete for the final two starting jobs.

Defense: Quaker Valley's defense will be headlined by its linebackers. Diemert returns in the middle after earning all-conference recognition in 2021 as a freshman. Fair, Benedict and Lance Burns are three others who will help against the run and the pass. Up front, Danko, Cox-Giles, Ray, Eshenbaugh, Djedid and Pesce will all rotate, hoping to keep consistent pressure. Meanwhile in the secondary, Pickett moves from corner to safety, while Mackey Gartley remains in his starting role at corner. Kozar, Nico Cardinale and Thomas Debelak will also receive significant playing time in the defensive backfield.

Classification: 3A

Last WPIAL title: 2017

Last WPIAL playoff appearance: 2018

Last WPIAL playoff win: 2017

WPIAL titles: 1

Ethan Morrison

Special to the Times

10/8/22

South Park 44, Quaker Valley 14 – A dominant rushing attack by South Park pushed them past Quaker Valley Friday night as the Eagles' Eric Doerue rushed 15 times for 158 yards and four touchdowns in the winning effort.

Quaker Valley was led by Jakub Pickett who scored the lone two touchdowns for the Quakers in this one rushing just seven times for 125 yards and two touchdowns.

Quaker Valley’s struggles continue as they fall to 1-5 on the season as they can’t find a way to get over the hump.

They will take on West Mifflin on the road next Friday in search of their second win.

TOP PERFORMERS

Quaker Valley

Jakub Pickett 7 rush 125 yards 2 TD

South Park

Eric Doerue 15 rush 158 yards 4 TD

Ethan Morrison

Special to the Times

10/10/22

Every Monday, the Beaver County Times will recognize both individual athletes and teams for their impressive performances that took place in the last week of high school sports action. Here are the standout efforts from the week of Oct. 3-9.

Football

Jakub Pickett, Quaker Valley

Quaker Valley looked to bounce back Friday night after blowing an early 12-0 lead over Hopewell the week before. But they were unable to do so as they fell to South Park by a final score of 44-14. But even though the Quakers got easily taken down by the Eagles, Pickett had a dominant showing as he rushed seven times for 125 yards and two touchdowns while also hauling in one reception for 7 yards. He scored both of his team's touchdowns on the night in the losing effort.

Joshua Carney

Beaver County Times

10/23/22

Beaver Area 48, Quaker Valley 9 — Coming off of a dominant win over Seton LaSalle in Week 7, the Beaver Area Bobcats continued an impressive run of play in Week 8 Friday night in Leetsdale, taking a 48-0 lead at the half over Quaker Valley before closing out the 48-9 win in 3A Western Hills action.

Qualan Cain opened the scoring for the Bobcats with a 5-yard rushing touchdown four minutes into the first quarter. Five minutes later, the Bobcats added on as Isaac Pupi hit Terrell Leeper for a 13-yard touchdown, and then followed up with a 9-yard scoring strike to Jack Kohrmann late in the first half, extending the Beaver lead to 21-0.

Two minutes into the second quarter, Beaver running back Frankie Chirico added on for the Bobcats, plunging in from 5 yards out before Brady Mayo added onto the Bobcat lead with a 45-yard pick-6 on the next Quaker Valley possession, making it 34-0 Bobcats.

A 4-yard rushing touchdown from Liam Gibson and a 13-yard touchdown pass from Pupi to Dylan Porto made it 48-0 Beaver at the half.

In the second half, Quaker Valley kicker Isaac Waller booted a 40-yard field goal for the Quakers to make it 48-3. Gavin Eshenbaugh later added a 66-yard rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter to close out the scoring in the game.

Beaver Area (6-3) hosts Hopewell in Week 9 to close out the regular season.

Top Performances

Beaver Area

Qualan Cain, RB — nine carries, 64 yards, one touchdown

Frankie Chirico, RB — 11 carries, 55 yards, one touchdown; two receptions, 25 yards

Isaac Pupi, QB — 7-of-10 passing, 85 yards, two touchdowns; two carries, 17 yards

Quaker Valley

Gavin Eshenbaugh, RB — 10 carries, 100 yards, one touchdown

Jakub Pickett, WR — two catches, 48 yards

Ethan Morrison

Special to the Times

10/24/22

Every Monday, the Beaver County Times will recognize both individual athletes and teams for their impressive performances that took place in the last week of high school sports action. Here are the standout efforts from the week of Oct. 17-23.

Gavin Eshenbaugh, Quaker Valley

Eshenbaugh was effective in Quaker Valley's 48-9 loss to Beaver on Friday as he rushed 10 times for 100 yards and a touchdown, averaging 10 yards per carry. The Quakers look to snap a five-game losing streak next week when they finish out the season against Avonworth on Oct. 28.

Joshua Carney

Beaver County Times

9/22/22

Each week of high school football in the Beaver Valley brings a new set of storylines to follow. Here are five things to watch Friday as the WPIAL football season rolls along with several Week 4 matchups.

4. What can Quaker Valley's Jakub Pickett do for an encore?

In Week 3, Quaker Valley wide receiver Jakub Pickett made program history in the Quakers' 40-22 win over Seton LaSalle. Pickett set the school's single-game franchise record for receiving yards, hauling in five passes for 163 yards and two touchdowns. Pickett’s performance broke a record that stood for seven seasons, when Chris Conlan tallied 160 yards receiving in 2014. How will the Quakers' star follow up that record-setting performance in Week 4 against arguably the best defense in WPIAL Class 1A in the South Side Rams? On the year, South Side has allowed just 20 points on the year and has a terrific secondary under head coach Luke Travelpiece, led by all-conference safety Brody Almashy. It's been a no fly zone much of the year against South Side, but Pickett will try and change that Friday night.

More:Times' Top Performances from last week: Sept. 12-18

Rachael Kriger

Special to the Times

9/23/22

LEETSDALE — The South Side Rams are holding strong to their perfect 5-0 record.

The Rams earned a 55-6 win on the road against Quaker Valley Friday, courtesy of a big night from junior quarterback Brody Almashy and the South Side defense. 

Despite the large score – and the fact that South Side ran away with the game, not letting a point after Quaker Valley’s early score in the first quarter – Rams head coach Luke Travelpiece stated that there were plenty of aspects to improve on. 

“It was sloppy early. There are a lot of things we can and need to clean up,” Travelpiece said. “Quaker Valley came out and their kids played hard. They took advantage of that and took the lead, and it was a good opportunity for our kids to face some adversity. We always talk to them about that. So, to be able to reach some of your own goals you have to face adversity. Hopefully we can learn from that and move forward.”

South Side was off to the races after a slow start. In an unusual moment, the Rams lost the ball. Quaker Valley senior Evan Raye picked up the ball and the Quakers found the end zone first, courtesy of a 10-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Troy Kozar to classmate Jakub Pickett, who set a school record last week.

The extra point, though, was no good, giving the Quakers a 6-0 lead.

Ethan Morrison

Special to the Times

10/1/22

HOPEWELL — Two of the Beaver Valley’s WPIAL Class 3A schools squared off against one another Friday night at Tony Dorsett Stadium as Hopewell hosted Quaker Valley in a conference showdown. After an undisciplined start for the Vikings, a balanced offensive attack propelled Hopewell over the Quakers by a final score of 40-20.

Things did not go as planned for Vikings from the jump as they found themselves in a 12-0 hole after Daveyon Jackson fumbled the ball on the first play from scrimmage, allowing the Quakers to return it for a touchdown. Troy Kozar later found the end zone on Quaker Valley's first offensive possession as he connected with Christian Brown for a 21-yard score, leading the 12-0 lead early in the matchup.

“We spotted them 12 points from the jump and the biggest thing as a coaching staff was that we needed to keep them calm," Hopewell head coach Matt Weiss said. "We knew there was no momentum swing there because they just got two quick ones and we knew that we could just keep chopping away and get back into the game and we knew that we were in a good spot.”

It seemed as if Quaker Valley was about to run away with the ballgame from the jump but the Viking offense sprang to life as they put up 27 unanswered points in the first half. 

A big part of the offensive onslaught was the rushing ability of Jackson, who found the end zone twice, rushing it in from 7 yards out followed that up with a 45-yard score near the end of the first quarter to give the Vikings their first lead of the contest. Jackson ended the night with three touchdowns. 

Weiss was pleased with Jackson’s ability to bounce back and become a reliable option in the backfield to kickstart the Hopewell offense.

“After fumbling on the first play of the game when he ran the kick return for a touchdown that eventually got called back, you could see where his mindset was," Weiss said. "That was a big thing this offseason when we were working with our kids was that we were working on being mentally strong and being able to have a next man mentality and that is exactly what it was.”

The pass game also was effective for the Vikings as freshman Kingston Krotec found Zander Muzy two for scores to help pad the Hopewell lead.

“You are seeing Krotec grow,” Weiss said. “It is tough for a freshman to play any position and for a freshman to play quarterback it is extremely difficult. He takes his coaching very well and his poise, and his confidence was something that we never questioned and that really carries him a long way and helps him with his growth.”

As the half was about to conclude, Quaker Valley cut the Viking lead down to just one possession after Kozar found Jakub Pickett for a 4-yard score, making it a 27-20 game at the half.

The second half was considerably slower than the start of the game as both teams traded possessions to begin the third quarter. 

Quaker Valley had a chance to knot the game up at 27 after an errant snap by the Vikings set the Quakers up at the Hopewell 9 yard line, well within striking distance. But the Viking defense held Quaker Valley on that drive as some great defense and some bad penalties had the Quakers attempting a field goal from the 24-yard line. The attempt was unsuccessful, once again gave Hopewell the ball back. 

“We had to battle a lot not only just the other team today and there’s a lot of different things that go on during the game and there is adversity that you have to challenge," Quaker Valley head coach Jason Cappa said. "We are young and inexperienced and it shows when we are not playing teams that are young and inexperienced.”

After hitting a rut for the majority of the third quarter, the Vikings added on some insurance as a Krotec 2-yard shovel pass to Sonny Kasanzale added to the lead before Jackson scored for the third time on the night — this time from 33 yards out – to double the Hopewell lead. 

Hopewell improves to 3-3 overall and 2-1 in conference play on the year. The Vikings will be home once again next week when they take on Keystone Oaks at 7 p.m. As for Quaker Valley, the Quakers fall to 1-4 on the season, dropping the second game in a row. The Quakers will take on South Park next Friday at 7 p.m.

Joshua Carney

Beaver County Times

12/5/22

CLASS 3A WESTERN HILLS CONFERENCE ALL-STARS

FIRST-TEAM OFFENSE

QB: Shai Newby, West Mifflin

RB: Luke Hilyard, Avonworth

RB: Liam Gibson, Beaver Area

RB: Delron White, West Mifflin

FB: Brandon Biagiarelli, Avonworth

WR: Austin Johncour, Avonworth

WR: Andrew Kuban, Avonworth

WR: Tyjier Williams, West Mifflin

WR: Jakub Pickett, Quaker Valley

TE: Peyton Faulkner, Avonworth

OL: Aiden Ezer, Avonworth

OL: Mason Metz, Avonworth

OL: Omari Smith, Beaver Area

OL: Sean Morrison, South Park

OL: Rico Steele, West Mifflin

ATH: Ty Tamborino, Seton LaSalle

SECOND-TEAM OFFENSE

QB: Nate Harper, Avonworth

RB: Gavin Eshenbaugh, Quaker Valley

RB: Eric Doerue, South Park

RB: Dayveon Jackson, Hopewell

FB: Gabe Lutton, Beaver Area

WR: Aric White, Seton LaSalle

WR: Tayshawn McMillian, West Mifflin

WR: Gerrell Leeper, Beaver Area

WR: Josiah Santiago, Beaver Area

TE: Stephen Handlow, Beaver Area

OL: Cole Hansen, Avonworth

OL: Aidan McKenzie, Seton LaSalle

OL: Anthony Trunzo, West Mifflin

OL: Greg Barlion, Hopewell

OL: Noah Reagan, Beaver Area

ATH: Rich Fix, West Mifflin

HONORABLE MENTION

QB: Isaac Pupi, Beaver Area

WR: Cameron Fedorka, Hopewell

WR: Jack Kohrmann, Beaver Area

WR: Colin Crawford, Avonworth

OL: Zach Dimtroff, Avonworth

OL: Steve Mescan, Seton LaSalle

OL: Abe Djedid, Quaker Valley

OL: Tyler Forstoffer, West Mifflin

OL: Braeden Walker, West Mifflin

DL: Ben Barnes, Avonworth

DL: Lawrance Kasanzale, Hopewell

DL: Braeden Crousey, West Mifflin

LB: Nico Neal, Avonworth

LB: Eric Doerue, South Park

LB: Kejuan Shields, West Mifflin

LB: Dom Giles, Quaker Valley

LB: Sam Pidro, Beaver Area

DB: Tyler Lewis, Hopewell

DB: AJ D'Agostino, South Park

DB: Jackson Vogt, Avonworth

DB: Tayshawn McMillian, West Mifflin

DB: Josiah Santiago, Beaver Area

Quaker Valley begins building project under new coach

By: Ray Fisher 
Tuesday, August 16, 2022 | 12:01 PM

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Jason Cappa, who comes from a family of coaches and educators, was hired in April as Quaker Valley football coach.

His father, Jake, was a football coaching legend at Riverview from 1986-2001, leading the Raiders to three WPIAL Class A finals in four years.

Cappa has been with the QV school district since 2019. He is a paraprofessional in the life skills classroom at the high school and serves as the middle school softball coach.

Cappa previously held coaching positions at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Riverview, Shady Side Academy, South Allegheny and Penn Hills Charter School of Entrepreneurship.

He attended Riverview and was a standout athlete in football, basketball and baseball. He was the first all-state football player in school history as a tight end/linebacker.

Quaker Valley’s new field boss inherits a program that’s gone 9-25 since winning WPIAL and PIAA championships in 2017.

“My expectations going into every season are always the same: teach fundamentals, train our players to become better athletes and football players, teach our athletes to compete at a high level and build positive relationships within our program,” Cappa said. “We have a lot of new faces and young players. We expect to get better every day, week and game with the mindset of a winner.”

The Quakers were 1-4 in the Class 3A Northwestern Six Conference and 2-8 overall in 2021 and have missed the playoffs the past three years.

Cappa welcomed 45 players to this year’s squad, including five returning starters on offense and five on defense.

Offensively, seniors Jakub Pickett (WR), Abe Djedid (OL) and Gavin Eshenbaugh (RB), sophomore Zack Djedid (OL) and junior Ethan Pesce (OL) are back.

Pickett was a first-team all-conference selection as a wideout last season, and Cappa had high praise for the QV athlete.

“Jakub is physically gifted, the hardest worker in the room, an excellent route runner with good speed and great hands, and he catches everything,” Cappa said. “He’s an aggressive player with fantastic leadership skills and is a very good student.

“The only thing Jakub needed to work on was his speed. He has a receiver trainer and a speed trainer that he’s been working with this offseason.

The 6-foot-2, 180-pound Pickett is a fourth-year starter who has set goals of 600-plus receiving yards and 12 touchdowns this season.

“I am really excited about this year under our new head coach,” Pickett said, “and am very excited about how the summer has gone.

“I feel this season will be my best because of my athletic improvements in the offseason and the coaching staff. The first day coach Cappa was hired, I knew the whole program would turn around, and the way it’s looking right now, it will.”

Pickett joined the QV track program last spring, then competed for Evolve’s 7-on-7 program in the summer months.

“I ran track last year. It was my first year and really enjoyed it,” said Pickett, who plans to continue his football career in college. “I do a lot of volunteer work for football camps in my area.”

Defensively, Pickett (DB), Abe Djedid (DE) and Pesce (DL) were starters a year ago, as were sophomores Mackey Gartley (DB) and Jack Diemert (OLB).

“I have been impressed with the effort and attitude our team has had this summer,” Cappa said. “Our quarterbacks, senior Troy Kozar, sophomore Marcus Richey and two freshmen, Logan Benedict and Ben McHenry, have all done a great job learning the offense and being leaders on and off the field. Troy and Marcus are both very good athletes and quarterbacks and look to carry the majority of the first-group snaps going into camp.

“Jack Diemert did not start on offense last season but will be a big part of our offense both in the run game and pass game. Our offensive and defensive lines have a good amount of game experience, which helps when so much of the team is young.”

Other QV players who had significant game experience last season and will contribute on both sides of the ball this year include senior Nico Danko (TE/DE), sophomores Dominic Giles (WR/DE), Nico Cardinale (WR/DB) and Lance Burns (TE/LB), and juniors Chase Kretzler (OL/LB) and Aidan Fair (OL/LB).

One of QV’s team strengths is anticipated to be its line play, thanks to the likes of Abe Djedid, Zack Djedid, Pesce, Danko, Giles, Burns, Kretzler and Fair.

“We are working with our players to learn how to compete at a high level,” Cappa said. “Our player expectations are to improve as a player, person and student.

“Expectations are from a character and attitude standpoint in terms of how you compete. We focus on three intangibles — effort, mental toughness and accountability — that everyone can show regardless of talent.”

Due to WPIAL realignment, the Quakers are competing the next two seasons in the Western Hills Conference with Avonworth, Beaver, Hopewell, Seton LaSalle, South Park and West Mifflin.

Quaker Valley

Coach: Jason Cappa

2021 record: 2-8, 1-4 in Class 3A Northwestern Six Conference

All-time record: 241-361-14

SCHEDULE 

Date, Opponent, Time 

8.26 at Freedom, 7:30

9.2 at Mohawk, 7

9.9 at Freeport, 7

9.16 Seton LaSalle*, 7

9.23 South Side, 7

9.30 at Hopewell*, 7

10.7 South Park*, 7

10.14 at West Mifflin*, 7

10.21 Beaver*, 7

10.28 at Avonworth*, 7

*Conference game

STATISTICAL LEADERS 

Passing: Connery Bulger*

43-124, 463 yards, 7 TDs

Rushing: Patrick Cutchember*

131-645, 6 TDs

Receiving: Jakub Pickett

17-256, 4 TDs

*Graduated

FAST FACTS 

• Jason Cappa previously served the offensive and defensive line coach at Quaker Valley. He is taking over for Ron Balog, who resigned in February after making one postseason appearance in four years on the QV sideline.

• Cappa attended Riverview in Oakmont, where he was a standout athlete in football, basketball and baseball. He was the first all-state football player in school history as a tight end/linebacker. Cappa continued his career as four-year inside linebacker at Clarion and was a member of the school’s NCAA Division II Final Four team.

• Jakub Pickett ended up in double figures in the tackles-for-loss category from his defensive back position last year. He ranked among the team leaders in total tackles.