Which defense was going to blink first?

That was the question Wednesday evening at Pleasant Valley.

The Bears’ boys soccer team welcomed a senior-heavy Liberty squad for an intense, well-played matchup between two EPC programs. The contest remained scoreless until a late goal from distance lifted Pleasant Valley to a 1-0 victory.

“We’ve been having this on the calendar ready to go,” said Bears first-year head coach Jonathan Mickens. “I told the boys essentially both teams are very talented; technically, tactically, they both can run the floor. It’s going to come down to winning those little moments at the end of the day.”

For most of the night, neither team could find one.

The first half showcased the strength of both defenses. Whenever a scoring chance began to develop, defenders quickly closed down space and denied quality opportunities from close range.

One of Pleasant Valley’s best chances came on a backdoor header that was stopped by Liberty goalkeeper Christian Hackett. The Hurricanes nearly capitalized on a through ball at the other end, but Bears goalkeeper Cole Clark aggressively came off his line to beat the Liberty attackers to it.

Clark made a similar play early in the second half, charging out to challenge a Liberty attacker. Although he didn’t win the initial race to the ball, his aggressiveness put him in position to make one of the two saves he needed for the shutout.

“I spent all summer working with a company called ‘Dominate the 18,’” Clark said. “It’s a program from youth kids all the way up to keepers in college. You can be a goalkeeper or a field player. I’ve been working with them my entire life, and that’s what really helped me soar to the top and become the goalkeeper I am today.

“I would love to give credit to Robert Pipech (the company’s founder and director). He taught me everything I know. We worked real hard all summer perfecting every technique, every single distribution, every single tactical and mental aspect of the game.”

As time ticked away in the second half, the physicality increased and scoring chances became more frequent. Hackett began facing more pressure from the Pleasant Valley attack.

Then, with 6:34 remaining, Bears senior Richon Russ finally broke through.

Russ launched a free kick from roughly 30 yards out, sending it over the crowd in front of the net and just beyond Hackett’s reach for the game’s only goal.

Liberty made a final push for the equalizer, but Pleasant Valley’s defense held firm to secure the hard-earned EPC victory.

Even in defeat, Liberty head coach Jason Horvath was pleased with his team’s performance.

“I thought we played really, really well,” he said. “We did what we were working on doing. We took away (PV’s) through balls as best as we could. They have a lot of team speed. We were able to keep up with it, and going at their goal, there (were) a couple times where I felt we had chances to score. We didn’t take advantage of it.”

MORE THAN A TEAM … While it was just one victory, it carried extra significance for Mickens because of his history at Pleasant Valley.

“I graduated (from PV) in 2018,” he said. “This is more than just another soccer team. It’s representing the school and (the) wonderful community we have in the Pleasant Valley area. I’ve had many games under the lights here, many overtime wins, overtime losses. So I understand what it feels like to go against these schools in the (Lehigh) Valley. I’m going to relish this win for a very long time.”

Pleasant Valley 1, Liberty 0

Liberty 0 0 — 0

Pleasant Valley 0 1 — 1

Goals: Pleasant Valley — Richon Russ. Shots on goal: Liberty 2, Pleasant Valley 6. Saves: Liberty — Christian Hackett 5; Pleasant Valley — Cole Clark 2. Corners: Liberty 5, Pleasant Valley 3.

Records: Liberty 2-2 (2-2 EPC); Pleasant Valley 3-0 (3-0 EPC).