South Fayette hosts USC in conference clash
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Action in the Allegheny Six Conference doesn’t get any easier this week, especially for Upper St. Clair.
After knocking off defending WPIAL Class 5A champion Peters Township, 21-7, the Panthers have the target on their back as they take to the road and visit undefeated South Fayette for a 7 p.m. kickoff on Oct. 4.
“It will be a hostile environment on the road as there is a lot of excitement in the community about their football team,” said USC coach Mike Junko. “They have really improved as a team from last year and they are one of the top teams in Class 5A.
The Lions joined Peters Township, USC and Bethel Park in the top five after starting the season at 5-0. They improved to 6-0 and 1-0 in the conference by blanking Baldwin, 38-0, on Sept. 27. The Lions looked particularly impressive in toppling Belle Vernon, which had won back-to-back WPIAL and PIAA championships in 2022 and 2023.
Under first-year coach Marty Spieler and with Drew Welhorsky calling the signals, the Lions have shown marked improvement over last year’s 4-6 campaign.
A junior, Welhorsky ranked No. 4 in passing in the WPIAL after the win against the Leopards. He has completed 67 of 94 attempts for nine scores and 1,047 yards. He has thrown only one interception.
Additionally, Welhorsky is situated among the WPIAL’s rushing leaders with 511 yards on 91 carries. He averages 5.6 yards per carry. He has scored seven touchdowns.
In the win against Belle Vernon, Welhorsky rushed for 121 yards and completed 13 of 17 aerials for 192 yards. He tossed two TD passes of 14 and 30 yards to Evan Earley and Tyson Wright and scored once on a 7-yard scamper.
Luke Gillen tacked on two field goals and the extra points.
In the win against the Highlanders, Welhorsky rushed for 121 yards and passed for 156. He threw for threw touchdown passes to Ben Cavenaugh (twice) and Aiden Martincic. He also scored on runs of 12 and 41 yards.
“(Welhorsky) is a true dual threat quarterback,” said Junko. “A real defensive coordinator’s nightmare.”
Junko recalled watching Welhorsky play junior varsity last year. He also saw limited varsity action as a freshman and sophomore, connecting on 22 of 32 passes for 233 yards and three scores.
“I knew they had a good one on their hands,” Junko said. “He has done a great job of learning a new offense and you can tell he is very comfortable in their system. He can beat you any number of ways.”
The Panthers won their first five games of the season with many players in multiple ways. Before tackling Peters Township in their opener, the Panthers used the one-two punch of Dante Coury and Julian Dahlem to dispatch McKeesport, 31-14.
Coury rolled up 187 yards rushing. He rushed for a 13-yard touchdown. He leads the team with eight scores. Coury had 361 yards on 46 rushes after five games.
“Dante is really a self-made kid,” Junko said. “He realized last year that he had to get faster and he had to get stronger. He was one of our top performers in the weight room and he dedicated himself to developing the tools he would need to be a successful 5A running back.
“Dante is also a very humble young man that trusts his teammates. He just wants to do his job every Friday night for the team. He is the kind of kid you love to coach.”
According to Junko, running back was a question mark for the Panthers going into the season but Coury and John Banbury, who scored a 21-yard touchdown against the Tigers, have stepped up. “They have done an excellent job of providing production out of that position,” he said.
Dahlem has provided versatility. He leads the team in rushing. Before the PT win, he ranked third in scoring with six TDs, behind Coury and placekicker Jacob Echeverria, who had 26 PATs and four field goals, including a 43-yarder against McKeesport.
In the win against the Tigers, Dahlem rushed for 104 yards. He gained half of those yards on a 54-yard touchdown run.
Banbury (21 yards) and Nico D’Orazio (17-yard TD pass from Ethan Hellmann), completed the scoring against McKeesport.
“Julian and Dante have great field vision and they do a great job of finishing runs. They do a great job falling forward and picking up those tough yards at the end of runs,” Junko said. “But, they both have been the benefactors of an offensive line that has really done the job for us all season.
Our guys up front really have an appreciation for the way those two run the football.”
Dahlem doffed his cap to his O-Line after scoring all three touchdowns against Peters Township.
On offense, Dahlem rolled up 185 yards on 22 carries for two touchdowns – a 16-yard scamper with 1:29 remaining in the third quarter and a 71-yard sprint on a third-and-32 play with 5:29 left in the contest. He also had a Pick-6 on defense for a 16-yard score.
“It’s just the O-line,” Dahlem said. “They open everything up. Those dudes work their butt off every day in practice and they make me work harder. I have so much respect for them. I am so proud of them. It all goes to them.”
The guys on both sides of the line will determine the outcome of the South Fayette-USC game. For the Panthers to win, Junko says it is imperative for them to “win the battle up front.”
Additionally they must continue to rely upon what has worked this fall.
“That includes protecting the football, playing with physicality up front, and limiting big plays from the other side,” he said.
Other games
On schedule in other Allegheny Six Conference battles set for Oct. 4 include Peters Township traveling to Moon while Bethel Park visits Baldwin.
The Indians improved to 5-0 overall and picked up their second shutout of the season when they blanked West Allegheny, 38-0.
In the win, Nolan DiLucia completed 14 of 23 passes for 352 yards. He tossed TD aerials to Nick McCullough (67 and 36 yards), Lucas Rost (17) and Lucas Shanafelt (28).
On the year, DiLucia already has 1,261 passing yards and 11 scoring strikes. He also has 223 rushing yards and two more touchdowns.
For the Indians, who ranked No. 1 in the WPIAL in defense, allowing just six points per game, Cole Neupaver rushed for a 4-yard touchdown and Anthony Maiello added a 29-yard field goal and five extra points to complete the scoring against West-A.
In the loss to USC, DiLucia completed 13 of 24 passes for 161 yards and a 44-yard scoring strike to Eli Prado.
Lucas Rost, DiLucia, Reston Lehman and PJ Luke excelled on defense for the Indians. Lehman had nine solo stops while Rost finished with nine total tackles. Both had quarterback sacks as did Lucas Shanafelt. DiLucia finished with eight tackles and Luke contributed seven.
Bethel Park continued to be the top offensive club in the WPIAL as they thumped Trinity, 49-7, and outlasted Moon, 45-36. The Hawks were averaging 50.1 points per game while surrendering just 15.1 in their first six victories.
JaVaughn Moore rolled up five scores in the win against the Hillers. He rushed for touchdowns of 3, 10, 7, 2 and 51 yards. He rambled for 201 yards against the Tigers and also hauled in five passes for 67 yards. He scored three touchdowns.
Tanner Pfeuffer tossed TD aerials to Santino Nowozeniuk (18 yards) and Clancy Orie (21 yards) against Trinity. In the win against Moon, he complleted 20 of 30 aerials for 330 yards and scoring strikes to Moore (31 yards), Jack Bruckner (33) and Mitchell Paschl (45). He also scored on a 2-yard run to put the Hawks ahead for good in the game.
CV at BV
Chartiers Valley will visit Belle Vernon for a 7 p.m. kickoff on Oct. 4.
The Colts improved to 3-2 overall after splitting games with Hampton and Laurel Highlands.
In the loss to the Talbots, Tayshaun Lewis rushed for two scores while Jake Lewis and Justine Terhune caught scoring strikes from Luke Miranda and Michael Lawrence respectively.
In a 42-14 win over the Mustangs, Luke Miranda completed a TD pass to Owen Weagraff and also recorded a rushing score of 10 yards. Julius Best returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown. Tayshaun Lewis and Michael Lawrence rushed scores of 54 and 2 yards respectively. The defense recorded a safety to start the game and Anthony Mousessian had a Pick-6 for 7 yards.