Bellefonte  1 , Penns Valley 0

BE 0 1 – 1

PV 0 0 – 0

Scoring:

Second half:

BEL – Wesley Cook from Connell Stabinger, 26:52

Shots on goal: BEL –    20. PV –   15.

Corner: BEL –    4. PV –   7.

Saves: BEL –    Elijah Davis 5. PV –   Owen Robb 8.

By Kenny Varner

SPRING MILLS – Thursday it was a battle of the unbeatens when the Penns Valley boys soccer team hosted Laurel Highlands rival Penns Valley.

The game would be a nail biter from start to finish but it would be only one goal that would separate the two.

In the end, the Red Raiders would come out victorious when Wesley Cook off a pass from teammate Connell Stabinger and  took the ball and slid it to the far corner of the net and scoring at 26:52.

From there, the defense was able to hold on as Bellefonte improved to 2-0 on the season while Penns Valley falls to 1-1.

“Overall, the first half we played pretty decently. We couldn’t get good shots“ said Bellefonte coach Scott Martz. “Their defense locked us down and we couldn’t great shots.

“But at halftime, we talked about pushing out to the wings. The wings cutting in and that’s how we got the goal. The guy on the outside busted in and he was there on the right spot and Wesley did a good job being there to knock it in and we just held on from there. I thought overall we moved the ball really well. We’re not use to grass (fields).

Bellefonte’s offense served as a strong defense as they kept the Rams pinned on their own side of the field.  They were able to maintain that through the second half, forcing the Rams back on their heels.

“That’s one thing I stressed in preseason, when we don’t have the ball everybody plays defense, “ said Martz. “You guys have to sprint back, double team and then we move it forward. Tonight they looked incredible with that. They double teamed people, they drove the ball forward.”

In the first half, both team’s defenses looked strong as neither one was able to find a crack in the other team’s armor.

Both teams found mini runs but could not put it past either back-line.

As the time ticked away in the first half, neither team was able to find that space they needed to put the ball through.

When the buzzer sounded the team’s finished the half, the way they started the game, tied at zero.

Coming out of the half, it was a battle for the momentum as the time started to tick down, forcing the players to ramp up the intensity.

Bellefonte found the break they need as the ball got in the possession of Stabinger.

With just over 22 minutes left, Stabinger, in transition, was able to dish off the pass to Cook. Cook, played the ball, and found the opening and sent it home, making it a 1-0.

That would be the only goal the Red Raiders would need as it was able to pretty much control the pace of the offense and the ability to clear out traffic from both sides