2nd-half surge helps Mt. Pleasant past improving Yough

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Wednesday, September 18, 2024 | 11:07 PM

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An uninspired first half meant a stern halftime talk from the coach.

And a stern halftime talk meant a much better second half was in the works.

Mt. Pleasant looked more like the No. 1-ranked team in WPIAL Class 2A girls soccer after halftime Wednesday night in a 3-0 shutout of improved Yough in a Section 4-2A game at Cougar Mountain Stadium.

“We got caught up in their emotion and their style of play,” Mt. Pleasant coach Rich Garland said of Yough. “We came out in the second half and played more together.”

Morgan Gesinski scored twice, bringing her WPIAL-leading goal total to 18, and Maddie Barrick added a late score to keep the Vikings unbeaten at 8-0 overall and 4-0 through the first wave of section play.

Mt. Pleasant has won 10 straight road games dating to last season and has beaten Yough five straight times.

But this was a different kind of challenge from the Cougars (6-4, 2-3), who were 5-14 last year and are quietly building back with a young core.

Against the highest-scoring team in the WPIAL coming with 52 goals, Yough only trailed 1-0 at the half.

“That’s the No. 1 team. They beat us 15-0 and 11-0 last year,” Yough coach Rob Broadwater said. “We were playing really well, we just weren’t getting many opportunities. You have to try to capitalize on the ones you get.”

Gesinski’s first tally came in the 19th minute. She took a corner kick and chased it to the net, which allowed her to corral a rebound and put it back for the score.

“We were a little tired from the last game (against Southmoreland) because it took a lot out of us,” Gesinski said. “We didn’t play our game. After halftime, we played our game.”

Mt. Pleasant came out firing after the break, but Yough goalkeeper Carly Fitzgibbbons was ready with her shield. She collected six saves against a potent attack.

Mt. Pleasant has outscored teams 51-3 and has five shutouts in eight games.

Eventually, though, Gesinski struck again, this time taking a dump off from Rylin Bugosh and finishing from the 18 to make it 2-0 in the 51st minute.

Some minor adjustments allowed Mt. Pleasant to play the game it had planned. But it took some time.

“Yough won the midfield in the first half,” Garland said. “We won it in the second half.”

Mt. Pleasant had nine shots to Yough’s three.

“I thought two of their goals were caused by breakdowns of our own,” Broadwater said. “We started seven freshmen tonight.”

Bugosh also assisted the third goal, a running header with a full head of steam from Barrick, and it was 3-0 with just more than two minutes left.

Laurel Rummel picked up another shutout in net for the Vikings.

Yough had played overtime in two of its last three games, edging Belle Vernon, 3-2, and falling to Southmoreland, 3-2.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Mt. Pleasant, Yough