ELIZABETHVILLE — Jordan Gessner, Mason Stoneroad and Alex Uhler can make defending difficult for the opposition.
The chemistry the Upper Dauphin trio possesses up top creates ample scoring opportunities for the Trojans. Saturday morning, Williams Valley repelled those chances as long as it could before the UDA top three again proved to be the difference.
Uhler’s 67th-minute goal from Gessner handed the Trojans a 2-1 non-league victory over the Vikings in a physical contest between the two neighboring schools.
Gessner scored the first goal of the game from Stoneroad in the 10th minute following a dominating spell of possession from Upper Dauphin.
“They have very good chemistry up top. The three of them do move the ball well,” Upper Dauphin coach Jeff Seiler said. “I didn’t think we moved the ball as well in the final third (Saturday) as we usually do, but we started picking it up in the second half. We had several combinations, we just didn’t finish all of them.”
The first one the Trojans (6-3) did finish started with Stoneroad possessing in midfield. The junior drew the attention of a couple defenders before picking out Gessner’s run through the middle. Gessner took a couple touches to get one-on-one with Vikings keeper Brent Reinoehl and throttled his shot into the lower-left corner of the net.
But the Trojans eased up their pressure following the goal and Williams Valley took full advantage.
The Vikings (3-3) probed deeper and deeper into the attacking third throughout the first half. After a couple free kicks from just outside the box, Williams Valley finally cashed in on a corner in the 34th minute.
James Zerby’s in-swinger from the left corner was bodied in by Chett Pesta to tie the game at 1 six minutes before halftime.
“It takes just something very tiny for them to start believing in themselves,” Williams Valley coach Seth Shuey said. “I just wish we’d be able to play like this all the time.”
The one gripe Shuey had was his side didn’t get many shots on goal — in fact, just three Viking shots reached Upper Dauphin goalkeeper Zack Johns.
The Trojans regained their momentum after halftime, getting quality chances from three throw-ins by fullback Calen Reigner into the box.
“We struggled a lot in the first half possessing,” Gessner said. “We talked through it (at halftime) and pretty much read the defense, understood where the openings were and worked together.”
All of those factors came together for the Trojans’ final goal. Gessner turned the slimmest opening into a game-winner by turning from midfield and hitting Uhler in stride through the middle of the Vikings’ defense. Uhler then chipped the ball to the right of Reinoehl, caught up with it and tapped it in.
“I was open in the midfield and I actually looked ahead before I got the ball,” Gessner said. “I wasn’t sure if the opening would stay there so I got rid of it as quick as I could and he made a great run on to it and a great finish.”
Williams Valley had a good claim for a hand ball in the box a minute later, but the call went unheeded from the referee. An Upper Dauphin defender knocked a ball down off his forearm and played the ball from his foot. Though the arm was not in an unnatural position — pinned against the defender’s chest — the claim was that the contact controlled the ball.
“That would’ve been a huge momentum swing,” Shuey said. “But he didn’t call it. That’s the way it is. You don’t like it, but you’ve got to live with it.”
Reinoehl made three quality saves in the final 11 minutes to give Williams Valley a chance late, but Upper Dauphin never let the Vikings obtain possession long enough threaten an equalizer.
“I thought we picked up the intensity more in the second half,” Seiler said. “In the first 15, we were controlling the ball, passing the ball very well. After we scored the first goal, it became ‘All right, we can settle down.’ ”
The victory puts Upper Dauphin back on the winning track. The Trojans won five in a row before falling in Tri-Valley League contests with Halifax and Lancaster Country Day, both District 3 contenders.
“It’s a win,” Seiler said. “It’s an ugly win, but I’ll take an ugly win over a pretty loss any day.”
Game Summary
Williams Valley (3-3) 1 0 — 1
Upper Dauphin (6-3) 1 1 — 2
UD — J. Gessner (Stoneroad), 10th minute
WV — Pesta (Zerby), 34th minute
UD — Uhler (J. Gessner), 67th minute
Shots on goal: Williams Valley 3, Upper Dauphin 10. Corner kicks: Williams Valley 3, Upper Dauphin 5. Saves: Williams Valley (Reinoehl) 8, Upper Dauphin (Johns) 2.
JV: Upper Dauphin 3-1