Wvw’s District Hopes Shot
By JOHN ERZAR [email protected]
Saturday, November 03, 2001 Page: 1B
KINGSTON – It may seem strange that Williamsport tailback Darrell Blackman
thinks some opponents misjudge him. After all, he came into Friday night’s
game four yards shy of 2,000 and with 24 rushing touchdowns.
But you have to hear him out.
“A lot of teams probably underestimate my power because I’m one of the
littlest backs in the league,” the affable 187-pound junior said. “I just
try to go out there and do what I can do.”
What Blackman did was mix his remarkable speed with surprising toughness.
The results were 287 yards rushing, three touchdown runs and a 38-20
Williamsport victory over Wyoming Valley West in a Northeast Pennsylvania
Football Conference Division 1 game that just about ended the Spartans’
season.
Williamsport (4-1 Div. 1, 8-2) gained a share of the divisional title, but
more importantly earned a District 1/2-4 Class 4A subregional playoff berth.
Valley West (4-1 Div. 1, 6-4) also gains a piece of the divisional crown,
but that was little solace. The Spartans’ subregional hopes ended and they
need to wait out the Eastern Conference standings to see if their season
continues.
“He’s the real deal,” Valley West coach Ed Michaels said of Blackman, who
became only the second opponent to gain more than 100 yards against the
division’s top-ranked rush defense. “We had him two or three times tonight,
especially in the first half.
“What we pride ourselves in is tackling and run defense. But he did it to
us and we saw what he’s all about.”
Blackman scored on runs of 18 and 77 yards in the first quarter and, along
with Jon Roberts’ 31-yard field goal, helped the Millionaires to a 17-6
halftime lead. He added a 53-yard TD run early in the fourth quarter, building
the lead to 31-6.
Valley West tacked on two late scores, a 16-yard reception by Brian Mattes
and a 42-yard run by Mike Piekanski, but they only made the game look closer
than it appeared.
Williamsport defensive end Raymond Brooks, who also blocks for Blackman as
a fullback, set the tone early with a 10-yard sack. The Millionaires finished
with seven sacks for minus-41 yards.
“Our defense played well tonight,” Williamsport coach Steve Radocaj said.
“The score doesn’t indicate how well the defense played. They got a couple
late touchdowns. We didn’t force a lot of turnovers, but we tipped enough
balls, broke up enough passes and came up with sacks. Big plays over and over.
They are just quick guys to the ball.”
Dwayne Blackman, Darrell’s older brother, was one of those quick guys. His
half.
Valley West had just 65 yards of offense in the first half and didn’t fare
much better in the third quarter. A pass on a fake punt went awry on the
Spartans’ first possession, and penalties and sacks turned a first-and-10 from
the Williamsport 38-yard line into a fourth-and-49 from their own 23.
The Spartans’ only bright spots were a 102-yard rushing performance from
Piekanski and a quick scoring drive capped by Kevin Sherlinski’s 17-yard run
that answered Blackman’s initial score.
