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Opposites attract

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The expectation was that it was going to be a battle of the unbeaten when Washington and Burgettstown meet in Century Conference matchup at Hill Memorial Stadium at 7 p.m. tonight.

Now, with Washington stomping on the gas pedal at the right time, and Burgettstown trying to start back up after stalling out in a 37-14 loss to Charleroi last Friday night, it looks like each maybe heading in opposite directions.

“We were extremely disappointed with how we played in the second half (against Charleroi),” said Burgettstown coach Mark Druga. “It was a good wake-up call. We know where we are at. We know what we have to get better at.”

The teachable moments and improvements better come faster than the speed of the Washington offense, which has scored at least 50 points in its past three games behind the emergence of sophomore quarterback Zack Swartz.

Swartz has balanced the Prexies’ attack by completing 34 of his 49 passes for 624 yards and nine touchdowns in that three-game stretch.

“He has just been getting better each and every week,” said Washington coach Mike Bosnic. “You can see his confidence continuing to grow. Zack is talented. I think our personnel has helped dictate that, also.”

In his first year as a full-time starter, Swartz is benefitting from having Division I recruits Isaiah Schoonmaker and transfer Daniel Walker, who is garnering interest from the University of Louisville, flanked as the Prexies top wide receivers.

After getting his transfer cleared, Walker has 13 receptions for 258 yards and three touchdowns in the three games he’s played this season.

“He adds another dimension to our offense,” Bosnic said. “He is a reliable pass catcher and someone that can make big plays.”

Washington (5-0, 7-0) also doesn’t have a problem with turning around and simply handing the ball off to senior running back Nick Welsh, who has eclipsed the 100-yard mark and at least one touchdown in every game this season. Welsh has 1,181 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns.

“They are a gigantic team,” Druga said about Washington. “Their skill is tremendous. We have preached how important getting several guys to the football and gang tackling is. If it’s one-on-one in the open field, there is a chance that we won’t do so well. Last week, especially in the second half, we couldn’t cover anything. This week in practice, we had to get back to improving our coverage because last week it was horrendous at best.”

A win for Burgettstown (5-1, 6-1) would only complicate things more atop the Century Conference, possibly creating a three-way tie between the two along with the winner of Charleroi and Beth-Center, and likely determining a champion with the WPIAL tiebreaking system.

If the Prexies continue roll to a 37th straight conference victory, a talking point that continues to gain steam in their locker room game after game, it would put them in an ideal position to win its fourth consecutive conference title.

“We have just been focused on getting better every single day,” Bosnic said. “I think our kids are aware of the streak. They understand what it means. Our attitude all year has just been about getting better. We’ve done a lot of winning over the past couple of years. I think our minds are in the right place.”

Druga also admits tonight could another big step in eventually emulating the success the Wash High program has sustained.

“We haven’t had a true memorable game for a conference title here in Burgettstown for 30 years. We would be tied or the conference championship with a win. Washington has been an incredible program since I’ve been playing. They’ve continued that tradition. It’s a tradition we hope to establish at Burgettstown. It’s the closeness of it all. The rivalry. The history. You don’t have that with teams that are an hour and a half away.”

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