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Upper St. Clair, Peters Township prepare for conference clash

By Eleanor Bailey almanac Sports Editor ebailey@thealmanac.Net 4 min read
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Two prestigious football programs will battle at 7 p.m. Sept. 22 when Peters Township hosts Upper St. Clair at Confluence Financial Partners Stadium in McMurray.

“In recent years, this game has been circled on both schedules,” said PT coach TJ Plack. “These are two proud programs that excel on the field.”

The Panthers own seven WPIAL trophies and two PIAA championships. They were 2022 WPIAL Class 5A runners-up in coach Mike Junko’s fourth season at the helm.

Under Plack, the Indians are 57-25 (not including Friday’s game against South Fayette). They have reached the playoffs five times in the past seven seasons. Plack coached the Indians to the WPIAL semifinals in 2018 and back-to-back Class 5 runner-up finishes in 2019 and 2020.

“Coach Plack and his staff have done a great job over at Peters,” Junko said. “His team this year reminds me of some of the WPIAL finalists he had.

“They really don’t have any weaknesses on either side of the ball,” Junko continued. “Defensively they attack and suffocate offenses. Offensively they just make highlight after highlight play on film.”

That spells trouble for the Panthers because the Indians steamrolled to convincing wins against Fox Chapel, 35-0, Seneca Valley, 48-7, and Trinity, 34-7, before visiting South Fayette.

Against the Hillers, PT flexed its muscles on both sides of the ball.

Defensively, Eliot Schratz and Darius McMillon had interceptions while Jake Velgich led the sack attack. He also returned a blocked punt for a score in the waning minutes of play. Dominic Sirianni also recovered a fumble.

Offensively, Carter Shanafelt kicked two field goals, measuring 29 and 30 yards, and provided four extra points. Nolan DiLucia scored twice on runs of 23 and 8 yards. DiLucia completed 12 passes for 127 yards and picked up 78 more on nine rushes. Present Blair also picked up 78 yards running and accounted for a 31-yard touchdown.

“Trinity was a good test,” Plack said. “They are a physical football team and we faced some adversity that we were able to manage before pulling away from them.”

Plack anticipates Peters Township and the Panthers will encounter their share of adversity but both teams will be well-prepared to handle those occasions. “Play on the field will determine the winner,” he predicted.

Inconsistency has defined USC’s pattern of success this season. A 42-34 win against Baldwin in the conference opener was an example. The Panthers led, 28-7, at halftime and 35-14, before surrendering 20, fourth-quarter points.

“Our game was marked with highs and lows. At times we played to our potential and at other times we struggled to execute,” Junko said. “Our job as coaches is to get our players to play with more consistency and discipline moving forward.”

In the win against the Highlanders, Mason Chambers rushed for scores of 23 and 5 yards. Julian Dahlem returned a fumble 52 yards for a touchdown and rushed 61 yards for another score. Dante Courty had a Pick-6 for 59 yards and Ethan Hellman rushed for a 9-yard TD. Bennett Henderson kicked the extra points.

Junko anticipates a “great atmosphere” surrounding USC’s game against the Indians but notes Peters Township will be a challenge to contain.

“For us to find success we have to find a way to sustain drives and slow them down on offense,” he said. “Nobody that we have seen play them on film has been able to do either so far.”

Meanwhile, the Indians cannot ease up on the gas pedal.

“We’re are going up against another highly competitive, discipline, hungry football team and that is always a concern,” Plack said. “We will have to be at our best.

“We need to continue to play with great effort and execute,” he continued. “We play our best when we rely on each other. We need our guys on defense to continue their attacking style, and some play makers need to emerge on offense.”

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