Penalty kick lifts Riverton over Bingham in key Region 3 match

SOUTH JORDAN — After playing reasonably well during the first half of its tilt with rival Bingham Friday afternoon, Riverton's decent work was rewarded in the 40th minute with a goal from Ben Dietrich.

At halftime, coach Paul Mozier instructed his players to treat the contest as if it was still tied; he wanted them to stay aggressive and make sure they didn't have to defend for 40 minutes.

The second half was vastly different than what Mozier and the Silverwolves wanted, but they got the job done anyway. Riverton spent most of the second half pinned inside its own half, but the defense and goalkeeper withstood Bingham's pressure and the Silverwolves escaped with a 1-0 win.

"The first half we played pretty well," said Mozier. "In the second half we held on pretty well for dear life . . 40 minutes is a long time to defend, as we found out."

The win helped Riverton stay atop the early Region 3 table with six points. Meanwhile, Bingham, one of the preseason favorites to win the region championship, fell to 0-2 in league play.

To Riverton's credit, despite the fact they didn't have much possession in the second half, they didn't come under heavy pressure until the final ten minutes.

Bingham had several scoring chances during that period, but Riverton stayed compact in defense and hung on for its third ever win over the Miners.

The Miners' best chance fell to Todd Hardy in the 75th minute — his majestic header thundered off the cross bar. Scoring opportunities also fell to Derek Westegaard and Trent Bradshaw.

All in all, it took a fairly solid defensive effort to keep Bingham off the scoreboard. Riverton defenders Brant Harsh and Tyler Arens played particularly well, and sophomore Zach Dunn was solid in goal.

What was the key to Riverton's defensive effort?

"It's about intensity," said Harsh. " . . . I think we had desire to win the game."

Friday's lone goal came just before halftime. After Nate Swank was hauled down inside the box, Dietrich calmly stepped up and drilled the penalty kick past Bingham's goalie.

Both Riverton and Bingham have aspirations for winning the Region 3 title, and in that sense, the early advantage goes to the Silverwolves.

"It puts us in a good position," said Mozier.

In other action Friday:

REGION 2