Upper St. Clair stuns PT in battle of unbeatens
Observer-Reporter
UPPER ST. CLAIR — Upper St. Clair lost running back Dante Coury against one of the top defenses in the WPIAL, and that’s when Julian Dahlem decided to take over.
The senior scored all three touchdowns in the Panthers’ 21-7 victory over Peters Township in the Class 5A Allegheny Six Conference opener on Friday night at Upper St. Clair.
Both teams entered the game at 5-0 overall, but the Panthers came away with their 500th victory in program history in a game that was televised as part of the “Steelers High School Showcase Game of the Week.”
The Indians were in Panthers’ territory with 3:35 left in the third quarter when Van Hellmann intercepted a reverse halfback pass and Upper St. Clair took over at its own 25.
The Panthers lost five yards before John Banbury got his team out of a hole on a 27-yard run.
Dahlem scored on a 16-yard run with 1:07 left in the third quarter for a 14-7 lead after Jacobo Echeverria made his second of three PATs.
“All the credit goes to my offensive line,” Dahlem said. “They are the best offensive line in the WPIAL, and they opened all the holes for me.”
Dahlem capped the scoring on a 71-yard touchdown run with 5:16 remaining in the fourth quarter. He rushed for 178 yards on 25 yards.
The Panthers’ offense struggled to get going in the first half, as Peters Township’s stout defense held down Upper St. Clair run game.
Upper St. Clair got on the scoreboard first when Nolan DiLucia was hit while scrambling in the backfield looking to make a play, and Dahlem picked off the ball and returned it 24 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead with 6:44 left in the second quarter.
DiLucia was 11 of 24 for 158 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
The Indians scored on their next possession when DiLucia threw a 44-yard touchdown pass to Eli Prado on fourth-and-one and Anthony Maiello made the extra point for a 7-7 game with 3:07 left in the second period.
Peters Township started the drive on its own 20 and faced a third-down and long that DiLucia converted on a 14-yard draw play.
Peters Township had great field position to start the game after the kickoff went out of bounds. The Indians’ Nick Courie picked up a first down into Panther territory, but Upper St. Clair forced a fumble and took over at its own 41.
Peters Township forced a turnover on downs before the Panthers forced a turnover on downs at 7:08 of the first quarter.
The Indians drove to the Upper St. Clair 35 on the strength of two DiLucia first-down throws to Nick McCullough for 30 yards but the Panthers forced a punt.