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By JOHN ERZAR Times Leader Sports Writer
Saturday, October 30, 1999     Page: 7B

WEST PITTSTON – A groin injury kept Wyoming Area quarterback Fred
Marianacci from playing. Then his backup, Andy Castanaro, went down with an
ankle injury, leaving freshman Lou DeMark in control of the offense.
   
But that was not a worry because tailback P.J. Regis, one of the top
rushers in Division II of the Wyoming Valley Conference, was still available
… until he hurt his wrist in the fourth quarter.
    Then there was a botched field goal and a fumble 2 yards from the end zone.
   
Still, Wyoming Area found a way to forge a 14-7 victory Friday over Panther
Valley in a non-conference football game.
   
Regis was around long enough to score the game-winning touchdown on a
1-yard run in the first quarter and rush for 140 yards on 28 carries.
   
“It was a hell of a team effort coming off the loss last week to Dallas,”
Wyoming Area coach Paul Marranca said. “I told the kids that Panther Valley
is a good football team. They lost to three (state) ranked teams in the area.
I knew we would be in a dog fight.”
   
Without their big dogs, it was up to the Warriors’ defense to preserve a
14-7 halftime lead. The defense did so by holding the Panthers to 68 yards of
offense in the second half.
   
The Panthers (5-4) crossed midfield once in the second half as quarterback
Jake Canzoneri completed a 15-yard pass to Scott Marek to the Wyoming Area 35.
But after a rush for no gain and an incompletion, Wyoming Area’s Mike Liberski
and Alan Felker recorded consecutive sacks to end the drive.
   
It was those types of defensive efforts that made up for a few miscues
offensively. Wyoming Area (6-3) moved to the Panther Valley 2 and 4 on
successive fourth-quarter possessions, only to lose scoring chances on a field
goal attempt and fumble.
   
Wyoming Area didn’t show any side effect from last week’s 21-20 loss to
Dallas, a game that severely damaged the Warriors’ chances to win the Division
II title.
   
The Warriors moved 55 yards on their initial possession with Castanaro
ending the drive with a 1-yard sneak.
   
Panther Valley tied the score at 7, after it blocked a Wyoming Area punt
and scored one play later on a 3-yard run by Danny Blazosky.
   
Blazosky found running room scarce, gaining just 33 yards on 15 carries.
The Panthers weren’t much more successful throwing. Castanaro, Randy Herring
and Blake Barbini intercepted passes. Panther Valley 7 0 0 0 – 7
Berwick 14 0 0 0 – 14
   
First Quarter
   
WA – Castanaro 1 run (Kasper kick) PV – Blazosky 3 run (Marek kick) WA –
Regis 1 run (Kasper kick)
   
Second Quarter
   
No scoring
   
Third Quarter
   
No scoring
   
Fourth Quarter
   
No scoring PV WA First Downs 9 14 Rushes-Yards 28-59
58-230 Passing yards 95 2 Passes 8-23-3 3-9-0 Sacks by 1-10 3-22
Punts-Avg 4-28.5 2-25.0 Fumbles-lost 0-0 3-1 Penalties-Yards 6-74
10-59
   
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
   
RUSHINGPV, Blazosky 15-33, Marek 7-35, Canzoneri 6-(minus 9). WA, Regis
28-140, Castanaro 7-56, Randazzo 8-43, DeMark 5-(minus-7), Wolcott 1-(minus
4), Musinski 7-19, Barbini 1-(minus 17). PASSINGPV, Canzoneri 8-23-3 95. WA,
Castanaro 2-5-0 6, DeMark 1-1-0 (minus 4). RECEIVINGPV, Blazosky 3-47,
Skodacek 1-1, Krisak 1-13, Marek 2-16, Conway 2-18. WA, Wolcott 1-9, Regis
2-(minus 7).