Pottstown earns some respect, tops Upper Merion
By DENNIS C. WAY
21st Century Media
UPPER MERION->>First, Pottstown felt disrespected.
Two hours later, they felt victory.
The Trojans ruined Upper Merion’s Homecoming Friday night, scoring a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to defeat the Vikings, 20-6, in a key Pioneer Athletic Conference Frontier Division game.
Isaiah Mayes scored all three touchdowns as the Trojans earned their first divisional game this year.
The key to victory for the Trojans might have been the first series of the game, when the Vikings, facing fourth-and-short from their own 33-yard line, decided to try and get the first down.
“We felt we could get it,” said Upper Merion head coach Harold Smith. “We thought we were in good position to get it.”
Instead, Vikings back CJ Sanders was spilled for a 1-yard loss, and six plays later, the Trojans were in the Vikings end zone.
“I was surprised they went for it,” Mayes said. “To tell you the truth, we felt a little disrespected.”
Mayes got into the end zone from the 3 to put the Trojans on the board with 5:10 left in the first quarter, and Pottstown would never trail.
Upper Merion got back in the game with an 11-play drive that ended with the first of two Anthony Littlewood field goals, the first coming from 38 yards out with 7:06 left in the second quarter, the second tying the game midway through the third quarter.
But Pottstown never wavered, and never tired.
“We do a lot of conditioning, and I’m a wrestler, so I’m in pretty good shape,” Mayes said. “And that helps.”
Turned away twice in the first half after getting on the Vikings side of the field via an interception and a fumble, the Trojans weren’t to be stopped in the second half.
A seven-play, 65-yard march early in the fourth ended with a 25-yard Mayes touchdown with 9:52 left in the game.
The quarter’s second touchdown iced the game, with a 19-yard pass play from Josiah Wiggins to Anthony Wiggins, plus an Upper Merion personal foul penalty, getting the Trojans in range for Mayes’ 4-yarder that iced the verdict.
“Pottstown played well, they beat us,” Smith said. “I really like (Mayes) and No. 44 (Ernest McCalvin). They’re real tough players.
“But it was tough for us to win with the refs we had. We had some real tough calls against us.”
After the Trojans putaway touchdown, the Vikings put together a decent last-minute drive.
But when Walter Bullock intercepted Vikings quarterback JP Batton in the final minute, the Trojans had a hard-earned win.
And maybe some respect.
END NOTES: Mayes would finish with 129 rushing yards to accompany his three touchdowns, while McCalvin would register 11 tackles and a pair of sacks.
