’Canes, Blackhawk to battle for potential playoff spot
Written: Oct 27, 2011
 
Call it a playoff for the playoffs — with another playoff included.
That’s the unique position the New Castle High football team faces as it welcomes Blackhawk to Taggart Stadium at 7:30 p.m. Friday in a WPIAL Class AAA Parkway Conference duel.
The Red Hurricane (3-3 conference, 4-4 overall) and Cougars (3-3, 5-3) are battling for fourth place and a postseason berth. However, if Hopewell (3-3, 5-3) beats West Allegheny (4-3, 6-2), the Vikings will go to the playoffs and the New Castle-Blackhawk winner will not, based on tiebreakers.
So, the ’Canes must win and hope for a West Allegheny triumph.
“It’s all on the line. We have to take care of our business. We can’t control what happens anywhere else,” New Castle coach Frank Bongivengo Jr. said.
“There’d be nothing worse than West A beating Hopewell and us losing to Blackhawk. The kids know what’s on the line. Our motto this week is to just take care of our business.”
Blackhawk, decimated by injuries this year, limps into the game with its own hope of making the postseason.
“We are so beat up this year,” Blackhawk coach Joe Hamilton said. “We started off well and have had to patch things up. We played West Allegheny and lost three senior starters and that put a big dent in our armor. We put some new kids in and they did OK. Then, we lost three more against Montour.”
Add in a shoulder separation to sophomore standout quarterback Chandler Kincade in Week 4 and an ankle injury to fullback/linebacker Mike Shansky last week.
“We’ve really been trying to put things together. We started two kids last Friday that I would have never bet my life on starting,” Hamilton said. “We’re not deep. We’re not near as explosive as we were at the beginning of the year.
“We’re just glad we’re in a position where we do have an opportunity to make the playoffs.”
Nevertheless, Bongivengo knows his troops are in for a fierce battle.
“Blackhawk is Blackhawk .They are going to be tough, scrappy kids. They have been banged up, but the kids they put in play the same way — hard,” he said. “They do all the little things right. They will fight you and that’s what they have done all year. They just keep battling and battling.”
Last year’s meeting between the two squads was a classic, decided on the final play when Johnny Matarazzo hit Marcus Carter for a 26-yard touchdown pass with no time left on the clock.
“It was a good game,” Hamilton said. “Anytime we play New Castle, it’s always a good game. New Castle has tough kids, along with talent. They have a very good football team with a lot of talent and skill. Hopefully, we can hang in and have a chance to win.”
The ’Canes could find success through the air against Blackhawk. Matarazzo is the county’s top passer with 1,501 yards and 21 touchdowns. Carter (48 catches, 583 yards) is his top target, while Darrian Rice (29, 351) is next. Jalen Holmes is a threat on the ground, too, with 728 yards.
“Stopping the passing game has been a weakness of ours. We’ve played the run well, but Montour chewed us up with the passing game and so did Central Valley. We dug our own holes in both those games by making mistakes and they capitalized on them,” Hamilton said. “Montour hit some big plays on us and so did Central Valley. There are a lot of good teams in our conference and coaches in it. New Castle has that flexibility to run and throw. They are a very good football team.”
With Kincade out, the Cougars may focus on the ground game. However, Shansky’s injury doesn’t help.
“We’re not a big-play team really. We’ll grind it out. We just don’t have that type of speed those other teams have. We have to work hard at getting our scores,” Hamilton said. “If we get open, we don’t usually break it the whole way. It’s definitely a problem for us. Our kids have performed well. They are hard-nosed and they worked hard at it.”
Receiver Josh Desmond, originally a quarterback, moved back into the role once Kincade went down. Bongivengo does not believe it handcuffs Blackhawk.
“He’s a pretty good quarterback, too,” he said. “He throws the ball really well. They like to throw it and he has made some nice throws. They like to run the ball and play-action you. I expect much of the same.”
There is a chance Kincade, Shansky and some of the other wounded Cougars could return to action, but it all depends on how well they’ve progressed in the healing process.
“There are a lot of ifs. We’re not planning on any of them being ready,” Hamilton said.
Overall, Bongivengo hopes his squad can defend its home turf.
“It’s Senior Night and it’d be nice if there was a nice crowd there,” he said. “Hopefully, we can give them a good performance.”
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