Taking over for a veteran coach who built a program into a perennial winner is kind of like stepping onto a stage right after a famous musician performs.

Scott Hazuda simply hopes the harmonious success of the Beaver Area boys' soccer team doesn't skip a beat.

When the Bobcats opened the season this week -- they defeated Mohawk, 13-0, in a Section 4-AA Mohawk on Tuesday and travel to Riverside today -- they did so with a new maestro. Hazuda replaces longtime coach Sig Brauch, who for the past 25 years was the steady hand behind one of the better programs in WPIAL Class AA.

Often times a coach taking over the reins of a team is left with the daunting task of rebuilding. But in Hazuda's case, success is already in place. The major challenge is staying consistent.

"You want to not come in and totally overhaul everything and start from scratch," said Hazuda, who makes the jump from directing the Beaver Area Middle School squad the past two seasons. "You want it to be a bit of a smooth transition. So I've kind of been trying to put a little of my stamp on the team, while at the same time trying to offer a little continuity for the guys."

Hazuda's fresh stamp includes playing at more of an uptempo pace. The Bobcats averaged a more-than respectable three-plus goals per game a season ago, but Hazuda said the talent is in place to play more of an aggressive style offensively, and hopefully with it, score more goals.

The Bobcats return their top two goal scorers, senior midfielder Sam Sestito and senior forward Ryan Conley, so increasing the offensive pressure appears like a beneficial strategy.

"I expect them to play a pretty attacking brand of soccer this year," Hazuda said. "The bottom line is we're going to take what we have and try to maximize our potential and see how many W's we can pick up."

Fielding a lineup with seven returning starters certainly doesn't hurt. Along with Sestito and Conley, the Bobcats also welcome back sophomore forward Josh Turnley, senior midfielder Tom Feldmeier, sophomore defender Andrew Scheidemantel, junior midfielder Zack Fisher and senior goalkeeper Jon Berger, who started as a field player last year.

Hazuda believes the Bobcats primary strength is their talent right down the middle of the field. Sestito and Turnley typically control possession in that area, as does Scheidemantel, the team's center fullback.

"Andrew Scheidemantel is really key," Hazuda said. "He's kind of the quarterback for our defense."

The combination of good players and a new coach has thus far been a fantastic fit. The season might be in its infant stages, but Hazuda said the advanced maturity of his players is already evident.

"I've been really pleased with their attitude and effort so far," he said. "They've really put a ton of effort forward. They've really embraced me and they support me, and I think we're off to a really good start."

The Bobcats got off to a really good start last year, too, winning seven of their first eight games. They stumbled down the stretch, however, finishing 11-6-1, and fell short of the postseason for the first time in a decade. Luckily for the Bobcats, this year's playoff outlook appears to be bright. The team is ranked No. 9 in Class AA.

"I do think there's a lot of potential here," Hazuda said. "One of our first goals is to definitely get back into the playoffs and hopefully even challenge for the section."

And therein lies a challenge that is two-fold but one in the same: Resuming a postseason ritual and resuming a level of success that has been in place for quite awhile.

"We were on the outside looking in, and now we're just trying to make sure that doesn't happen again," Hazuda said. "So we have that challenge ahead of us, to have to try to get Beaver back to the level that we performed at in the past."