Upper Dublin clinches SOL American title
WHITEMARSH >> Upper Dublin did its job Friday night to secure a share of the Suburban One League American Conference championship — beating Plymouth Whitemarsh 31-17 at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School.
When the Cardinals (7-1, 5-0) checked the scoreboard, they saw that Quakertown defeated Hatboro-Horsham, making them to outright champs with one regular season game remaining.
“You always want to get back,” Upper Dublin coach Bret Stover said of the team’s first league title since 2016. “We talk about playing relevant games in November. This is a game you need to play a relevant game in November.”
“Last year we almost got it,” Cardinals running back Lucas Roselli said. “Last second kind of thing. It feels good.”
Upper Dublin missed out on the league crown last year due to a 21-20 loss against Upper Moreland in the regular season finale.
Unstoppable offense
Upper Dublin scored every time it had the ball against Plymouth Whitemarsh except for running out the clock in the final two minutes of the game.
Quarterback Mike Slivka was a big reason why.
The junior went 11-for-15 for 145 yards and rushed four times for 77 yards.
“Mike seemed to always have the answer,” Stover said. “When we needed a fourth-down play, he made two big fourth-down throws or runs. He’s starting to come into his own.
“He’s got (the running ability) in him. Our offense isn’t made for him to run the ball, specifically. He’s been able to take off and run as he sees fit, as the game dictates, and he does a nice job with it. He’s an athlete.”
On the Cardinals opening possession of the game, Slivka ran 21 yards for a first down, connected with Selvin Haynes to convert a 4th-and-6 and drew the Colonials offsides on 4th-and-1 to set up a touchdown.
In the second quarter, Slivka broke free up the middle for a 55-yard run on 3rd-and-12 from his own 18-yard line.
“We drew those plays up,” Roselli said. “When they work it gives us a lot of confidence because we know we can drive the ball down the field.”
In the third, Slivka hit Haynes for eight yards on 3rd-and-7 and connected with a diving Roselli for 35 yards on 3rd-and-14.
On the second play of the fourth quarter, he hit Haynes for 20 yards on 4th-and-12.
“He’s a tough kid,” PW coach Dan Chang said of Slivka. “He’s a big kid, runs really well, throws a good ball. That first half they made a couple of big plays. A couple of big plays extended drives and we have to eliminate those.”
Mason Novak rushed for 32 yards and two touchdowns and Roselli rushed for 49 yards and a touchdown.
“We just feel out the game and each drive is different,” Roselli said of the offense’s success through the air and on the ground. “We know we have a lot of plays that will work. Coach will call the right ones.”
Special teams
Upper Dublin took advantage of some Plymouth Whitemarsh special teams mistakes Friday night.
The first came after PW took a 3-0 lead on a Nicholas Choi field goal. The Colonials tried an onsides kick, but it didn’t travel 10 yards.
Upper Dublin took over on PW’s 49-yard line and — five minutes later — took a 7-3 lead on a two-yard Novak touchdown run.
Plymouth Whitemarsh’s next kickoff — following a one-yard Larry McLaughlin touchdown run to trim the Colonials deficit to 14-10 with 1:17 left in the first half — they tried a high and short kickoff.
Unfortunately for PW, the ball landed in Roselli’s hands. He cut right and raced up the sideline for a 67-yard touchdown.
“We — the whole second line — knew if we got it we were going to score because they don’t contain very well,” Roselli said. “We just went to the outside. We knew we were going to get it.
“I knew I was going to score if I caught it.”
Pierce brothers impact
A couple weeks ago Plymouth Whitemarsh added juniors Christopher Pierce and Christian Pierce.
The twins are part of a military family and transferred from Maryland into Plymouth Whitemarsh earlier this season.
“They wanted to play football and once they were eligible to play we got them going,” Chang said. “They’ve been great for us. They’re great kids. They added another dimension to our offense and defense.”
Against Upper Dublin, Christopher caught three passes for 73 yards — including back-to-back jump balls over Upper Dublin stud corner Haynes to set up a touchdown — and ran the ball six times for 41 yards. Christian caught one pass for seven yards.
“They’re big athletic kids,” Chang said. “They pose some problems on the edge one-one-one. They’re good, lock-down cover guys. I’m excited to have them for another year.”
Last week in a 17-14 loss against Quakertown, Christopher caught five passes for 79 yards and ran for 59 yards and a touchdown. Christian caught three passes for 28 yards.
