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NORTH ALLEGHENY VARSITY FOOTBALL

SECOND HALF RALLY BY UPPER ST. CLAIR BEATS TIGERS, 16-7

To listen to a replay of the game, click here!

After leading 7-0 at the half, the Tigers saw Upper St. Clair score sixteen unanswered points in the second half to defeat NA, 16-7, on a rainy Friday night at Newman Stadium.  Senior FB Marek Lapinski scored the Tiger touchdown on a one-yard run early in the second quarter.  Five turnovers hurt the NA cause as they dropped their second straight non-conference game.  USC outgained NA, 288-182, in total yards. 

The Tigers started deep in their own territory when sophomore Brian Austin slipped on his own 8 while returning the opening kickoff.  Two runs by junior HB Carl DeCiantis gained seven, and junior QB Geoff Greco, in his first varsity start, picked up eight around right end for a first down at the 23. After DeCiantis ran for 8 on first down, junior running back Corey Watts broke through for seven and another first down at the 36.  With a third and six at the 40, USC's Taylor Everett made a diving interception at the NA 44.  After two plays gained five, junior WR Adam Chrissis gained seven and a first down on a reverse.  Four straight running plays by tailback Dane Conwell got another first down at the NA 18.  After an incomplete pass, the Tigers were called for roughing the passer giving the Panthers a first and goal just inside the 10.  USC quarterback Pat McShane gained four on first down but was hit for a two-yard loss by senior DE Tom Keiser.  Conwell then ran to the 4 where the Panthers elected to go for the field goal.  The kick by Alex Romanis was wide right and the game remained scoreless.  On first down, Greco ran around right end for ten and a first down at the 30.   Three plays gained 9 yards as the quarter ended.

As the second quarter began, Greco sent a long punt over the head of the USC return man.  The ball rolled all the way to the Panther one where it was downed by the Tigers.  After two plays gained only two yards, the Panthers fumbled and senior DB Alex Carson recovered for NA at the USC 3.  Two plays later, Lapinski dove into the end zone to give the Tigers the lead.  The extra point by senior Rich Doyle was good and NA took a 7-0 advantage at the 10:29 mark of the second quarter.  After Greco's kickoff sailed into the end zone, the Panthers took the ball and drove all the way to the NA 28.  On first down, Conwell got fourteen to the USC 34.  A pass from McShane to Everett picked up another first down at the Panther 44.  McShane then hit Chrissis for sixteen more to advance the ball to the Tiger 40.  The NA defense stepped up to sack McShane twice, with Corey Watts and Carson hitting the Panther QB for losses of five and two.  On third down, McShane found FB Neil Apfelbaum open for a gain of 18 and a first down at the NA 28.  After junior DE Zack Watts stopped Apfelbaum for no gain on first down, the Panthers were called for intentional grounding that moved the ball back to the 41.  After an incomplete pass and a procedure penalty, the Panthers punted to the Tiger 13.  Two runs by Greco got 13 and a first down at the NA 26.  After Greco picked up four more on first down, the Tigers lost yardage on the next two plays forcing Greco to punt to Everett who made a fair catch at the USC 48.  With 2:05 remaining, McShane ran for 12 to the NA 40.  Conwell broke through for seventeen more and a first down at the Tiger 23.  An illegal block by the Panthers negated the gain and moved the ball back to the Tiger 25.  Senior LB Darren LePere then sacked McShane for a loss of five.  After two plays gained only four yards, Romanis attempted a 44-yard field goal into the wide that sailed wide left as the half ended.  The Tigers took a 7-0 lead to the intermission.

It did not take the Panthers long to tie the game early in the third quarter. After the kickoff was bobbled and returned only to the USC 16, McShane hit Everett for a gain of 15 to the 31.  On second and six, Conwell broke through the middle, cut to his right, and outran the Tiger defenders to score on a 65-yard run.  Romanis tacked on the point and the game was tied at 7-7 just 1:31 into the second half.  After Austin returned the kickoff to the 25, a penalty set the ball back to the NA 15.  On first down, Greco ran around left end for ten and a first down at the 25.  After two running plays gained six yards, the Tigers fumbled and USC recovered at the NA 36.  Three plays gained only six yards, but Apfelbaum ran up the middle for nine on fourth down to give the Panthers a first and ten at the NA 21.  A first down fumble was recovered by USC at the 20.  Two more plays gained only four yards, and Romanis came in to kick a 32-yard field goal to put USC on top, 10-7, with 5:51 remaining in the period.  After Austin returned the kickoff 18 yards to the NA 28, Greco got 8 on two plays and Lapinski went off the left side for four more and a first down at the 40.  Three plays then picked up nine yards, and Greco was forced to punt.  McShane dropped the punt at his ten-yard line, but outfought a pair of NA players to recover the ball.  McShane was shaken up on the play but would return.  With junior QB Shane Brennan in the game, USC ran three plays and were forced to punt to junior Christian Totera who made a fair catch at the NA 35.  After a loss of two on first down, the quarter ended with Upper St. Clair holding the 10-7 lead.

After a procedure call against the Tigers, LB Brett Scheller picked off a pass at the Tiger 33.  It took the Panthers only five plays to score with Apfelbaum breaking up the middle untouched on a 25-yard run into the end zone.  The Tigers broke through to block the extra point, but USC now held a 16-7 lead  with 10:18 left in the game.  On the ensuing kickoff, the ball bounced off the NA return man and caromed fifteen yards downfield where the Panthers recovered at the Tiger 25.  The Tiger defense stood tall and held off the USC drive.  Two running plays gained a first down at the NA 12 before Zack Watts came through to nail tailback Grant Serdy for a loss of four.  After a penalty moved the ball back five yards, the Tigers tipped a pass and forced an incompletion.  A reverse to Chrissis was stopped by Corey Watts after a gain of only two.  On fourth down, Serdy ran to the NA 14 but was short of a first down.  On third and twelve, Greco hit his senior TE Tom Keiser for seventeen yards and a first down at the NA 29.  After a loss of a yard on first down, Greco threw to Austin for eleven and another first down at the Tiger 39.  On first down, Greco tossed a long pass down the right sideline that Austin was able to take away from McShane for a gain of 43 all the way to the Panther 18.  After Greco hit Austin for a gain of three, the Tigers were called for holding. and moved back to the 28.  Greco was then sacked for a loss of eight.  On third and long, McShane picked off a pass intended for Austin and returned it to the USC 18.   It was the fifth interception of the year for the USC cornerback.  With only 3:11 left, the Panthers gained only three yards in three plays and punted to Totera at the NA 46.  A running into the kicker penalty was declined by USC.  Two scrambles by Greco gained twelve yards, but a holding penalty sent the ball back to the Tiger 39.  Two incompletions turned the ball back to the Panthers who ran out the clock.  Upper St. Clair picked up a hard-earned 16-7 win to remain undefeated.

It was a good effort by the Tigers against the #2 ranked team in the WPIAL.  With the exception of the 65-yard run, the Tigers did a good job of containing the strong USC ground game.  Playing his first game as a varsity starter at QB, Greco stepped in and did a good job. The NA signal caller led the Tigers in rushing with 62 yards in 14 carries while completing six of eleven passes for 91 yards.   For his efforts, the North Allegheny Sports Network selected Geoff Greco as the NA Player of the Game.

The loss dropped the overall NA record to 2-2 as they completed the non-conference portion of their schedule.  The Tigers will open play in the new Northern Five Conference when they travel to Seneca Valley on Friday night.  The Raiders defeated Baldwin, 22-6, last night and have posted a 3-1 record.  The North Allegheny Sports Network will be there to broadcast the game LIVE on the internet beginning with the pre-game show at 7:10 pm.  The kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 pm.

TEAM STATISTICS

GAME SUMMARY
UPPER ST. CLAIR - 16  NORTH ALLEGHENY - 7

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

Any questions or comments should be directed to Athletic Director Bob Bozzuto at:  bbozzuto@northallegheny.org