New Castle suffers costly loss to Central Valley
New Castle (6) vs. Central Valley (23)
Written: Sep 18, 2010
  By JOE SIMON
j_simon@ncnewsonline.com
MONACA — There was an eerie feeling surrounding Sarge Alberts Stadium following Central Valley’s 23-6 victory over New Castle.
Most of the New Castle fans remained in the stands following the Parkway Conference game, gazing onto the field in disbelief. Some may have been puzzled by the strange way in which the game unfolded. Others might have been trying to figure out how Central Valley recovered all four of its fumbles. Most, however, looked on in concern as junior quarterback Johnny Matarazzo lay on the ground, motionless after being sacked on the final play.
Matarazzo eventually was carted off on a stretcher with what coach Frank Bongivengo Jr. called a neck injury. Although the extent of the injury was not known, Matarazzo appeared to be moving all extremities and was conscious. The hope was that the stretcher and resulting hospital visits were merely precautions.
As for the game ... well, it, too, had a sad and disappointing feel. The ’Canes drove 72 yards on their first drive of the game, scoring when Matarazzo hit Jesse Ambuster on an 11-yard pass. That ended up being New Castle’s only points.
“Some weird things happened during the course of the game, but that doesn’t excuse the way we played offensively,” Bongivengo said. “We just didn’t do what we normally do. We got down inside the 20 two, three or four times and came away with no points. When you do that, it’s tough to recover from.”
The Canes (1-1, 2-1) forced a three-and-out after their initial score and drove to the Warriors’ 25-yard line. New Castle lost 3 yards on its next four plays and didn’t score. After stopping Central Valley on a fourth-and-7 play, the ’Canes moved to the Warriors’ 21. This time, they ended up losing 17 yards.
Central Valley (1-1, 2-1) capitalized this time. Quarterback Curtis Lewis hit Dominic Belcastro for a 51-yard pass to New Castle’s 3. On second-and-goal, running back Paul Palombo fumbled on a play up the gut. The ball popped out right in front of Lewis, who scooped it up and walked into the end zone. It was one of many fortuitous bounces for the Warriors.
“There were some fumbles that bounced right back to them, but that’s part of the game,” Bongivengo said. “We’re really disappointed in how we performed offensively tonight because the defense played a great game. We gave up two big plays, but other than that, I don’t think they moved the ball at all on us.”
New Castle ran for just 66 yards, was intercepted twice, dropped passes and fumbled three times, including a crucial one right before halftime. With 10 seconds remaining, the ’Canes were at their own 5 on a third-and-20 play when Matarazzo fumbled an errant snap in the end zone. He fell on the ball for a safety, giving Central Valley a 9-6 lead.
The Warriors took that momentum into the second half. Lewis lobbed the ball to a wide-open Chad Phillis for a 51-yard TD pass. New Castle could have countered, once again moving deep into the Warriors’ territory, but Matarazzo misfired on what appeared to be a sure touchdown pass to Joe Isabella on third-and-9 from the 12. Marcus Carter caught a slant pass on the next play, but came up inches short of a first down.
“We moved the ball right down the field, and then, all of the sudden, we just went totally out of sync,” Bongivengo said. “I don’t know why.”
New Castle had a chance to climb back into the game when, trailing 16-6, a bad snap went over the head of the Warriors’ punter and trickled into the back of the end zone. Punter Robert Foster, also a running back, picked up the loose ball, made a move and darted 41 yards down the sideline for a first down.
“You can call them lucky bounces if you want, but it was ugly at times,” Central Valley coach Mark Lyons said. “We never got into any rhythm offensively. New Castle didn’t allow us to. But the thing about this game, and all the crazy bounces, was that there were a lot of athletes on the field. When you get a lot of athletes on the field, they’re going to make special plays.”
Matarazzo was picked off on a deep pass to Carter on a later drive, and then a muffed punt by New Castle occurred when two ’Canes ran into each other, ruining great field position. New Castle had yet another chance to make a comeback attempt, but a Matarazzo pass bounced off the hands of a receiver and Central Valley’s Brad Waskaski picked it off and returned it to the 3. Justin Shaw scored from a yard out two plays later to end the scoring.
Matarazzo’s injury came on the next drive, as he was sacked by a host of Warriors on the final play of the game. The blow is especially devastating because running back Justin Fleo, who didn’t play, already is out with ankle and wrist injuries. Bongivengo said he isn’t sure when either one will return.
NEW CASTLE CENTRAL VALLEY
13 First downs 6
105 Yards Rushing 115
39 Yards Lost 30
66 Net Rushing 85
26 Passes Attempted 13
13 Passes Completed 7
2 Passes Intercepted 0
148 Yards Passing 130
214 Total Yards 215
3-1 Fumbles-Lost 4-0
3-35.3 Punts-Average 36.6
5-21 Penalties-Yards 4-17
NEW CASTLE 6 0 0 0 — 6
CENTRAL VALLEY 0 9 77 — 23
Scoring plays
NEW CASTLE — Jesse Ambuster, 12-yard pass from Johnny Matarazzo (kick failed).
CENTRAL VALLEY — Curtis Lewis 6-yard run (Gregory Nicastro kick).
CENTRAL VALLEY — Safety, Matarazzo recovered New Castle fumble in end zone.
CENTRAL VALLEY — Chad Phillis, 51-yard pass from Lewis (Nicastro kick).
CENTRAL VALLEY — Justin Shaw 1-yard run (Nicastro kick).
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