Nov 23, 2019 3 min read

IRWIN – On a rain-soaked field, Peters Township nearly had one of its brightest moments.

But this was not going to be that day.

Rallying from an 11-point deficit, the Indians came up two points shy of a first-place trophy. Instead, the rain turned to tears when the clock ran out on a 21-20 loss to Gateway in a WPIAL Class 5A championship game on a Saturday night at Norwin High School.

Gateway will play District 12 champion Archbishop Wood next weekend in the PIAA semifinals.

Peters Township, co-champion of the Allegheny Eight Conference, finds its season over with a 12-2 record.

Getting to this game was the goal when head coach T.J. Plack was brought in to breath life into a stale program five years ago. All he had to do was find a way to make winners out of a football team that rarely made the playoffs and had only one winning season in the 12 years before his arrival.

Not only did Plack coax playoff seasons from his players but had them on the biggest stage last night.

What was the secret?

“Get a group of seniors just like this group,” he said without hesitation.

The dynamic play of Josh Casilli in the backfield and secondary, the speed of Ryan Magiske and the dependable toughness shown daily by lineman Zach Magnotti, just to name a few, have left a legacy for other players to follow and improve on.

“I’ll be happy tomorrow to get this,” said Plack, holding out the second-place trophy. “So will our guys when we reflect on it. But right now, it just hurts a little bit.”

Peters Township earned its way to the WPIAL championship game with some impressive football in the playoffs. The Indians pummeled Mars, 47-6, in the first round and walloped Moon, 33-7, in the quarterfinals. A 28-10 win over top-seeded Penn-Trafford brought this team to Norwin for a chance to be champions.

“We got a good nucleus of guys coming back, a good junior class,” said Plack. “Whether it’s next year or a few years from now, we’re just going to keep building. We have great families, great support. We have smart players, intelligent and physical. So yeah, we’re hoping to be back here next year.”

Gateway, the second-place finisher in the Big East Conference, has won seven WPIAL championships. Peters Township can use that program as how high the bar needs to be set.

“I told the kids to focus on this,” Plack said. “I thought last year was special but this was a truly phenomenal group. They love each other, they are highly competitive. People throw the word family around but these guys still sleep over at each other’s houses. We love coaching these guys.”