SELINSGROVE — The Danville and Selinsgrove boys soccer teams deployed air-tight defenses Thursday afternoon to battle their way to a 0-0 tie after 90 minutes and overtime in a Heartland Athletic Conference Division I contest.

Both teams battled back and forth for control of the middle and got MVP-type performances from their goal keepers.

“Early in the game Selinsgrove controlled the middle of the field,” Danville coach Chris Johns said. “They came out in a different formation than we were expecting and we were forced to make some adjustments and change some things during the flow of the game. Once we did that we were able to get more control over the middle.”

In the early minutes, Selinsgrove (1-0-1 HAC I) used its size and strength to push Danville (0-1-1) off of the ball and keep the Ironmen out of sink. This type of physical play continued until the Ironmen moved some players around to get more speed and numbers in the middle of the field.

“We wanted more numbers in different areas of the field,” Johns said. “We came here prepared to make adjustments to our game. We were confident in our formations, but we knew we needed to be able to make changes based on what Selinsgrove was giving us.”

Early in the first half Seals goal keeper Matt Salsman displayed his aerial skills by jumping up and grabbing two corners kicks as the Orange and Purple tried to get shots centered.

“The first half was the best we have played so far in the short season,” Selinsgrove coach Chris Lupolt said. “Matt (Salsman) knows how to play the corner kicks. He is extremely tough in the air and does a great job of relying on his defenders to help.” Momentum then changed sides as Danville started to control the middle and play more aggressively on the offense. The Ironmen spent the majority of the half on the attack, getting eight shots and four corner kicks. Two of the scoring attempts bounced off of the crossbar and another just sailed past the right side of the goal.

“The opportunities were there for us in the second,” Johns said. “We have been working hard the past couple of weeks and I think our fitness had a lot to do with our ability to keep the tempo up late in the game.”

Scott Holdren was easily the most valuable player of the game for the Ironmen. Holdren defended three hard shots including one that could have been the difference late in overtime.

Selinsgrove was able to get a push up field and get the ball over the middle with a centering pass. As the Seals lined up the shot, Holdren got back into position to stop it just in time. Holdren ended the day with 13 saves, none as important as this one in overtime.

“Both goal keepers played a great game,” Lupolt said. “Our team will build from this. We played a quality team and were able to play our game and make adjustments when we needed too. It is an extremely tough conference all the way through and we will be looking forward to playing this team again.”

Neither team will receive a break for their outstanding play as Selinsgrove will travel to Shikellamy and Danville will face Midd-West at home. Both games are scheduled for 4:30 Tuesday,