Playoff-chasing Upper Merion handles Pottstown, 29-0

KING OF PRUSSIA >> Upper Merion was playing with its back against the wall on Friday night.

As the second-to-last team in the District 1-5A field, the Vikings knew a slip-up would hamper their postseason quest. Pottstown was hoping to spoil the Vikings plans, hungry for its first win in six weeks.

The Vikings ensured the Trojans never built any momentum in a 29-0 victory on Friday night.

An efficient offense and stifling defense helped Upper Merion (4-5, 2-3 Frontier) lead from start to finish and improve its standing heading into the final weekend of the season.

“We’ve been practicing hard and it really helped us out,” offensive and defensive lineman Dominic Cacciavillani said. “Just hard work, we gotta earn it. We gotta win these game and get ourselves a good spot in these playoffs.”

Running back Justin Besz led the Vikings with 10 carries for 70 yards and score, while quarterback Zayd Etherdige completed 11-of-12 passes for 104 yards and a score.

Zayd Etheridge 6-yard toss to Marcus Crittendon. 7-0 Upper Merion with 10:02 left in Q1. pic.twitter.com/aQNYBF5inm

— Owen McCue (@Owen_McCue) October 21, 2022

Upper Merion marched 56 yards in four plays on its opening drive to go up 7-0 on a six-yard touchdown down pass from Etheridge to Marcus Crittendon (two catches, 15 yards).

Offensive linemen Cacciavillani, Stephen Kraus, Elijah Davis, Joey Zapien and T.J. Hanley helped set the tone up front early for the Vikings, who ran 27 times for 124 yards in the game.

“Our linemen think as ‘five as one’ and that’s what we did tonight,” offensive and defensive lineman Elijah Davis said. “We came out, we hit them hard and we controlled that line, let them know that it was us.”

The Vikings were halted deep in Trojans’ territory on their next possession but Andrew Haney picked off a Pottstown pass and returned it 14 yards for a score to expand the lead to 15-0 with 1:21 left in the first quarter.

Pottstown (1-8, 0-5 Frontier) found some success going to running back Aaron Winfield (nine carries, 49 yards) on its next drive but a bad snap spoiled a field goal attempt and the Trojans’ momentum.

The Vikings captured back the momentum with a six-play, 76 yard drive that included a 25-yard completion to Michael Scavello (three catches, 66 yards). Yusuf Riley (four carries 17 yards) punctuated the drive with a one-yard score, and the Vikings took a 22-0 lead into halftime.

Besz finished out the game’s scoring on the Vikings’ first drive of the second half with a powerful nine-yard touchdown run. The Upper Merion defense blanked the Trojans in the second half to post the team’s first shutout since a win over Pottstown last season.

“We just played our game, Vikings football,” Cacciavillani said. “We didn’t really change much up. We were just going into it with the stuff we’ve been doing all year. Just keeping it the same, playing hard and executing.”

The Trojans showed some signs of life at times but hampered themselves on both sides with 17 penalties for 175 yards.

Pottstown gained 194 yards on the ground led by running back Dimark Lyons, who had seven carries for 102 yards. His highlight was a long run to start the second half, on which he broke about four tackles. Quarterback Dillon Mayes added six carries for 38 yards.

Next up for Pottstown is Norristown in a PAC Crossover matchup to finish the season. The Trojans dropped a 21-12 contest to the Eagles on Sept. 16, and they hope to get some revenge next week to conclude their 2022 campaign on a high note.

“Just get back to square one, do what we do,” Pottstown coach Levert Hughes said. “The way that we do that, we gotta overcome the mistakes.”

The Vikings will have the opportunity to secure and improve their postseason position when they play a PAC Crossover contest next week. They also hope Friday’s victory can shift the momentum of their season.

Upper Merion lost three of its last four contests entering Friday night including a 27-21 loss to Pottsgrove last week. A two-game winning streak would make the Vikings a lot more dangerous entering the District 1 playoffs.

“Once you get to playoffs, anything’s possible,” Cacciavillani said. “I don’t care what those standings say. We’re just going to play Vikings football. We know the deal.”

“I feel like we got a good team,” Davis added. “Our record doesn’t say much, but I know that deep down we have a really good team and if we can put it together, we can go far.”

SCORING

UM – Crittendon 6 pass from Etheridge (Palladino kick)
UM – Haney 14 INT return (Clayton pass from Etheridge)
UM – Riley 1 run (Palladino kick)
UM – Besz 9 run (Palladino kick)

TEAM STATISTICS

PT UM
First downs 8 18
Rushes-Yards 29-194 27-124
Passing yards 8 105
Total yards 202 226
Passes C-A-I 4-11-2 13-14-0
Fumbles-Lost 1-1 1-0
Penalties-Yards 17-175 8-67

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
Pottstown: Lyons 7-102; Winfield 9-49; Mayes 6-38; R. Bostic 5-3; Washington 1-2; Thomas 1-0.
Upper Merion: Besz 10-70, TD; I. Robinson 7-24; Riley 4-17, TD; Clayton 3-16; Seals 1-13; Etheridge 1-(-10); Team 1-(-6).
Passing
Pottstown: Mayes 4-11, eight yards, 2 INTs.
Upper Merion: Etheridge 11-12, 104 yards, TD; Solley 2-2, one yard.
Receiving
Pottstown: Washington 2-9; Wilson 1-4; Thomas 1-(-5).
Upper Merion: Scavello 3-66; Crittendon 2-15, TD; Clayton 2-14; Besz 1-11; Wallace 1-3; Robinson 1-(-2); Thomas 1-(-2); Seals 1-(-3).
Interceptions
Upper Merion: Varano, Haney.
Sacks
Pottstown: Washington.