Agoura Duo Aiming For An Encore Performance

Corey Da Silva is a pass-catching specialist. Kevin Beams is as sure-handed as any receiver around.  

Individually, each is talented in his own right. Together, they're extremely tough to contain.  

The tandem from Agoura High proved as much on the football field time and time again last season. And based on their play so far this summer, Da Silva and Beams appear poised to deliver an encore performance.  

"Corey and Kevin, those two kids are a couple of our best options on the offensive side of the ball,'' Agoura coach Charlie Wegher said. "We know what they're capable of and they know what's expected of them.''  

Quarterback Gerard Poutier has had the luxury of having Da Silva and Beams line up across from each other at the line of scrimmage during a number of 7-on-7 passing tournaments over the course of the past month.  

As a result, the Chargers enjoyed a fair amount of success at last week's Conejo Valley Classic at Newbury Park High. And earlier this month, Agoura went undefeated at the Under the Lights competition at Saugus High.  

"What can you say about Corey and Kevin, they make my job much, much easier, that's for sure,'' Poutier said. "We're all on the same page. They know our offense backwards and forwards. I can count on them in any type of situation.''  

That was the case on Tuesday as Poutier and the Chargers had little trouble moving the ball in a passing tournament at Agoura against Calabasas, Simi Valley and Rio Mesa.  

"Once we get rolling, we're difficult to defend,'' Wegher said.  

Da Silva finished with 484 receiving yards as a junior, ranking him fifth among the many talented wideouts in Marmonte League play.  

Westlake's Nelson Spruce (1,325) and Thousand Oaks' Richard Mullaney (997) topped the list, and both return as seniors. Newbury Park's Phillip Muscarella (843) and Simi Valley's Adam Schechter (595), who graduated this month, ended up finishing third and fourth.  

Da Silva was next in line and did most of his damage downfield, getting behind the secondary. His 28 receptions, at 17.3 per catch, is a good indication of Da Silva's ability to find open space against opposing corners and safeties.  

At 5-foot-10,140 pounds, he didn't present the biggest target in the red zone. Nevertheless, Da Silva scored seven touchdowns.  

"Corey always seems to come up with the big plays,'' Poutier said.  

As for Beams, he was more of a possession receiver during his junior season, doing the dirty work over the middle.

Beams finished with a team-high 34 receptions for 358 yards. The 5-foot-11, 160-pounder averaged 10.5 yards per catch and scored two touchdowns.  

"Me and Corey always joke around, he's thunder and I'm lightening,'' Beams said. "We feed off each other. When he makes a big play, I feel like I have to make a big play, and vice versa. We have a connection like that.''  

Add everything up and Da Silva and Beams accounted for more than 60 catches and nearly 900 yards receiving as underclassmen.  

With a year of experience underneath their belts, there's no reason to think that the playmaking pair aren't capable of, at the very least, duplicating those types of numbers as seniors for the Chargers.  

Improving their statistics is a distinct possibility. "The good thing about Corey and Kevin is they're confident now and that figures to go a long ways,'' Wegher said. "The sky's the limit for those two.''