Many of the upperclassmen had already been through this winning a Penguins Cup title thing.

Those who fell into that category had likewise experienced hoisting the Pennsylvania Cup trophy, too.

For the Quaker Valley freshmen and sophomores, however, the 3-1 win against Mars Area last week at Mellon Arena in the PIHL Class A Penguins Cup final was their first taste of championship glory.

There were some upperclassmen, however, who fell somewhere in between -- they might have been on the team two years ago, but did not dress for the playoff run or did not play a prominent role.

No one fits that latter category better than junior goalie Zack Taylor.

"It's a great feeling," he said after the game. "I've been sitting there watching for two years, so it's good to finally get one of my own that I feel more a part of."

Taylor watched and patiently waited the past two seasons behind Zach Zinger, a PG Stellar Six selection last season and one of the top goalies in the area the past few years. But this season, Taylor got his chance and he is a big reason Quaker Valley won the Penguins Cup and will play for the Pennsylvania Cup championship Saturday.

The Quakers will play Flyers Cup champion West Chester East at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Cambria County War Memorial Arena in Johnstown for the Class A title. West Chester East (19-7) beat Rustin, 4-1, in the Flyers Cup final, despite being just the No. 9 seed in the Flyers Cup playoffs.

Taylor played only 110 minutes as a freshman and won four games as a starter last season. Zinger, who had a 0.94 goals-against average and .955 save percentage last season, was a three-year starter. He is playing at the Berklee College of Music in Boston.

"I definitely felt a little pressure trying to fill his shoes," Taylor said. "Zach Zinger is a great goalie. I was just hoping to live up to my expectations and to the standard he set."

After the Penguins Cup game in the joyous victorious locker room, Taylor was one of the players Quinn singled out.

"It was a tough hole to fill what Zach Zinger did for us," Quinn said.

"With how good a goalie he was, everyone was worried about Zack Taylor and whether he'd be as good as Zach. It's tough to fill those shoes and, especially early in the season, I thought [Taylor] had a couple tough games against some very good opponents.

"But he's been stellar the rest of the way, and he's won games for us and as a junior. I think that as a first-year starter, that says a lot about his character."

During the regular season, Taylor was 17-2 with a 1.63 goals-against average and .916 save percentage with three shutouts. After losing two of his first eight starts -- allowing a combined nine goals in the two defeats -- he has won 14 in a row (including playoffs) and allowed only 17 goals in his last 11 regular-season victories.

"I think [my teammates] got real confident in me and I thought they got real comfortable with me really quickly right off the bat this season," Taylor said. "So, it felt good."

During the Penguins Cup playoffs, Taylor was 3-0 with a 2.67 goals-against average. He came up biggest when it mattered most, limiting Mars, PIHL Class A's highest-scoring team, to only one goal on 21 shots in the championship game. That included a stop of Mike Heltman on a penalty shot in the first period.

"That gave me a ton of confidence; it boosted my confidence way up there," Taylor said. "Once a goaltender has that confidence and feels that, there's no way a puck's getting by you."The championship

• What: Quaker Valley vs. West Chester East in Pennsylvania Cup Class A final.

• When: 11 a.m. Saturday.

• Where: Cambria County War Memorial in Johnstown.

• Radio/Internet: Game can be heard at WBGG-AM (970) and www.msasportsnetwork.com.