McKEESPORT, Pa. — McKeesport had won four straight games over Upper St. Clair since 2016. However, as both teams faced off against one another — for the first time in six years — on Friday night, the Panthers wanted to come out with a statement.
The Tigers were held scoreless in the first half and despite finally getting their offense to click in the second half, it was too little, too late as Upper St. Clair (5-0) defeated McKeesport (1-4) 31-14 in a Week 4 non-conference matchup.
McKeesport looked in rhythm to score on their opening drive of the game. Brady Eastman threw a 51-yard pass to Javien Robinson, who caught the pass in double coverage setting up the Tigers inside the Panthers’ 40-yard line. Kemon Spell rushed for a 16-yard gain to follow, but the Tigers could not score to conclude the drive after failing to convert on fourth down.
With the defensive stop that Upper St. Clair generated, the offense looked to capitalize on the turnover on downs. On the Panthers’ opening drive, Julian Dahlem ran up the middle, which looked like it would have been a 61-yard rushing touchdown, but a hold assessed to Reese Pirain took the scoring play back. The Panthers were not fazed by the minor setback. Later on in the drive, Dahlem connected with Bryce Jones for a 41-yard catch. That big pass resulted in Ethan Hellman, rolling out in a naked bootleg and throwing an 18-yard touchdown pass to Nico D’Orazio to open up the scoring.
In the second quarter, the Panthers took a 14-0 lead. Dante Coury rushed for gains of 17 and 18 yards before capping off the drive with a 12-yard touchdown. Right before halftime, the Panthers looked to extend their lead but Jacobo Echeverria missed a 45-yard field goal. Echeverria made up for the missed opportunity by converting a 42-yard field goal later on in the game.
After the intermission, the Panthers didn’t miss a beat extending their lead to 21-0 as Dahlem rushed for a 57-yard touchdown. Upper St. Clair scored again in the third quarter. After Ethan Hellman threw a 34-yard pass to his brother Van Hellman, John Banbury rushed for a 21-yard touchdown.
Kemon Spell, a Penn State commit, entered Friday’s game with eight rushing touchdowns for McKeesport. However, the Panthers stood their ground against him not allowing him to score. This was the only second game that Spell did not score a rushing touchdown, with the last time being in Week 1 against another Allegheny Six opponent in Peters Township.
Anthony Cromerdie was the one McKeesport Tiger player that kept them in the game. Cromerdie scored the first touchdown for the Tigers in the third quarter on an 80-yard run as he broke three tackles before running down the sidelines into the end zone. Later on in the quarter, after a 40-yard reception by Robinson and a 23-yard carry by Spell, Eastman found Cromerdie wide open in the endzone for a 23-yard score.
Both teams will begin conference play next Friday. Upper St. Clair will host Peters Township to begin Allegheny Six Conference play while McKeesport will travel to Hampton in Greater Allegheny Conference play.
