’Canes looking for cure against Moon
Written: Sep 25, 2014
 By Andrew Koob
New Castle News
The Red Hurricane is sick and tired.
Sick and tired of losing, sick and tired of making mental mistakes ... just plain sick and tired in general.
A win on Friday night against Parkway Conference foe Moon at Taggart Stadium at 7:30, however, might just be the cure for the ’Canes’ 2014 woes.
“There’s definitely an attitude of ... we’re exhausted. It’s exhausting to put in the time and effort you do and not get the results you want,” New Castle coach Joe Cowart said. “There are two things you can do about that, react the right way or the wrong way and I think the kids have gone about it the right way. I think the kids have done a good job of staying focused. We tell them it’s a five game season and we’re trying to learn from what we’ve done the first four weeks.”
The ’Canes (0-3 conference, 0-4 overall) get another crack at putting their first mark in the win column against the Tigers (2-1, 2-2), a team that has dealt with adversity of their own. In two wins against Blackhawk and Ambridge, Moon has won by a combined 27 points; in losses to Mt. Lebanon and Central Valley, the Tigers lost by a total of 90 points.
New Castle still is in playoff contention after opening the season with four losses. In the Parkway Conference, five teams reach the playoffs and, with two teams including Moon sitting at 2-2 in the fourth and fifth spot, New Castle still is within striking distance of a postseason berth.
“If we win four of our five games, we’re in the playoffs,” Cowart said. “We just have to stay focused on the task at hand and make sure we execute on Friday. It’s just a matter of executing in crucial moments in the game with a focus on the next play. We can’t look back at a play, positive or negative, we just have to move forward.”
To do that, New Castle will have to deal with the Tigers’ large pair of twins in Aleksei and Niko Yaramus. Quarterback/defensive back Aleksei, a 6-foot-2, 210 pound senior, has the arm strength and size to either throw the deep ball or tuck it and run.
Handing the ball off to him at center is Niko, the 6-foot-3, 285 pound senior who has offers from a number of Division I football programs.
“Aleksei Yaramus is a heck of a player and they’re putting a lot more on his plate this year,” Cowart said. “He played last year, but they’re putting more confidence in him and letting him throw the ball more.
“(Niko) is a big body and they have a number of big bodies next to him. We have a challenge ahead of us and we have to execute our game plan if we want to win.”
New Castle will have to get more production out of its passing attack to best the Tigers. Quarterbacks Geno Stone and Pat Minenok have thrown for 452 yards, a touchdown and five interceptions while completing 44 percent of their passes.
While the on-field production is a work in progress, Minenok has started to fit the mold of the team leader. When a teammate makes a mental mistake in practice, Minenok is the one in his ear telling them to do better.
“Pat is as good as they come as a leader and he’s continuing to grow,” Cowart said. “He’s our hardest worker and he’s our best player. We need him to be that on Friday night. We’re blessed that our best player is our hardest worker.”
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