FREEPORT — Beaver Falls may lack the experience, but certainly not the success.

Entering Friday’s WPIAL Class AA first-round playoff game against Freeport at Highlands, five of the Tigers’ top six offensive skill players are sophomores.

“On film, they don’t look like young players,” Yellowjackets coach John Gaillot said. “They look like veterans. I’m very impressed with that. Actually, all aspects of their game. They are very well-coached.”

Beaver Falls coach Ryan Matsook has never shied away from using younger players.

“Actually, our ninth-grade group in 2010 (now juniors), we saw some real talent there,” Matsook noted, “some raw ability and decent bodies.”

This year the sophomores, led by quarterback Dan Stratton, who has completed 62-of-123 passes for 1,356 yards and 18 touchdowns, took over from a batch of graduated seniors.

Elijah Cottrill and Sage Curry are Stratton’s top targets. Curry is averaging more than 40 yards per reception.

Damian Rawe leads the ground game with 766 yards on 107 carries .

“Damian runs hard,” Matsook said. “He and Rob Bell are separated by only a couple of carries. They get the tough yards. They lead block for each other. You have to do that here.”

Gaillot certainly has taken notice of what the underclassmen have been able to do so far.

“They have size and quickness and are a very athletic group of kids,” Gaillot said. “(Stratton) throws very well, their running backs run hard and their line comes off the ball.

“Their defense swarms to the ball like us. We have speed but not as much as they do. They have more like East Allegheny does.

“I hope it comes down to who makes the least amount of mistakes,” Gaillot added.

Beaver Falls (7-2) finished third in the rugged Midwestern Conference behind Aliquippa and Beaver, but playing Freeport (7-2, Allegheny Conference champions) will be a challenge.

“Watching them on film, they’re hard-nosed kids. They definitely run to the football and play with passion,” said Matsook. “They have something to prove every Friday.”

Matsook was also impressed with the play of Yellowjackets quarterback Brendan Lynch.

“He’s a heck of a player,” Matsook said. “Certainly when he gets the ball, he’s a threat to score. He runs their offense to a ‘T,’ very crisp.

“They’re a very well-coached team,” Matsook added.

Lynch, after his 107 yards passing and 123 yards rushing in last week’s 47-0 victory over Summit Academy, leads the team in both categories with 605 and 1,007 yards, respectively.

Lynch has tossed seven scoring passes and rushed for 11 more. Mike Teorsky has added 373 yards on 39 carries while Dustin Koedel (153 yards) and Tony DeVivo (223) have each pulled down seven passes and combined for five touchdowns.

Game time is set for 7:30 p.m.

Karns City (6-3) at Marion Center (3-6) 7 p.m., Friday

Coaches: Karns City, Ed Conto; Marion Center, Dave Malicky

Last Week: Karns City routed Brookville, 45-20; Marion Center cruised past United, 35-6.

Numbers: Gremlins QB Tyler Kepple ran for 101 yards on nine carries, including touchdown runs of 49 and 46 yards, and passed for 116 yards and another score to lead the squad. ... Kepple leads the team with 744 passing yards and has added 432 yards rushing behind Wyatt Everetts’ 555 yards. ... The Stingers are led by sophomore QB Blake Orr, who completed eight of 11 passes for 148 yards and three TDs in the first half.

Notes: The win last week gave the Gremlins the KSAC-Large Division title outright. ... Marion Center, out of District 6, hit a rough patch after splitting their opening two games when it dropped three in a row and five of six before last week’s win.

Slippery Rock (8-1) at DuBois Area (8-0) 7 p.m., Friday

Coaches: Slippery Rock, Brendan Hathaway; DuBois, Frank Varischetti

Last Week: Slippery Rock downed Oil City 28-13 while DuBois rolled over Meadville 58-24.

Numbers: DuBois, a District 9 quad-A school playing in District 10, Region 5-AAA, has dominated its opponents all season by an average score of 46-13. ... DuBois sophomore QB Gabe French has completed 100-of-149 passes for 1,391 yards and 17 touchdowns this season while backup QB Connor Stewart, also a sophomore, has completed 25-of-28 passes this year. ... Beavers’ RB Garrett Brown has rushed for 1,570 yards and just 149 carries and has scored 22 TDs. ... Slippery Rock RB Frank Conlon has rushed for 248 yards in the last two weeks and has 461 yards on just 56 carries this year. ... Senior QB Ryan Currie leads the Rockets with 659 yards rushing and 16 TDs.

Notes: Slippery Rock beat DuBois 38-34 last season after suffering a 28-19 loss to the Beavers in 2010.

Union (8-1) at Cam. Springs (3-6) 7 p.m., Friday

Coaches: Union, Dave Louder; Cambridge Springs, Clint Rauscher

Last Week: Union earned a 19-0 shutout over Keystone. Cambridge Springs was pounded 61-18 by Mercyhurst Prep.

Numbers: Union quarterback Brody Shick eclipsed 1,000 passing yards on the season last week and has thrown 12 touchdowns and five interceptions this year. He has also picked off 10 passes on defense. ... Colton Noble paces the Cambridge Springs rushing attack with 852 yards and five TDs on 133 carries heading into last week.

Notes: Both teams originally had a bye this week, but added the game late.

A-C Valley (3-5) at West Shamokin (2-7) 7 p.m., Friday

Coaches: A-C Valley, Brad Dittman; West Shamokin, Josh Gilliland

Last Week: A-C Valley dropped a 49-14 decision to Clarion while the Wolves fell to visiting Apollo-Ridge 49-7.

Numbers: A-C Valley senior QB Kevin Kaufman is still battling an injured ankle and his status for Friday’s game is unclear. He did see action in three series last week, completing five of nine passes for 60 yards. For the season, Kaufman has completed 71 of 170 passes for 1,054 yards with eight TDs and seven interceptions. ... The West Shamokin offense’s biggest threat is its ground attack as fullback Zack Horner and halfback Andrew Wingard, both sophomores, have combined for 1,282 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Notes: The Falcons are still alive for a District 9 Class A playoff berth. If they win Friday, they will be guaranteed a spot in the postseason. If they lose, their fate will be determined by power ranking points between A-C Valley and Coudersport. ... The Wolves ended their WPIAL record 46-game losing streak with a 25-6 victory over Riverview Sept. 14.

Moniteau (1-8) at Brockway (8-1) 7:30 p.m., Friday

Coaches: Moniteau, Jeff Campbell; Brockway, Mike Pisarchick

Last Week: Moniteau was downed 38-23 by Punxsutawney. Brockway was dropped 55-20 by Port Allegany.

Numbers: Last week’s loss marked the first time Brockway failed to score at least 35 points this season. ... Brockway QB Alec Shaffer-Doan has completed 61.2 percent of his passes for 1,927 yards, 23 touchdowns and 11 interceptions this year. ... Chad Melillo is the Rovers’ primary rusher with 1,108 yards and 17 TDs on 175 carries. ... Dustin Geagan leads Moniteau with 973 yards and 11 TDs on the ground. ... Cody Skiver was 8-of-11 passing for 63 yards, one TD and one pick last week for the Warriors. ... Andrew Armagost has 148 tackles and 12 sacks for the Moniteau defense.