Second half woes plague Pioneers, fall to 0-5
Michael Balakier
Monday May 6, 2002
In the second half, the Pioneers were limited to only six points on a measly 15 offensive plays. The Pioneers’ troubles also continued on turnovers, committing five fumbles, all of which were lost.
Pioneers head coach Terry Karg explained that the team’s troubles seem to be a snowball effect, with the same problems, specifically turnovers, constantly occurring.
“We turned the ball over four or five times in the game,” said Karg. “You just can’t do that and win. It’s disappointing.”
Another trouble the Pioneers faced was the lack of consistency in playing all four quarters, a problem that has beleaguered the team since their first game. “We came into the game and we did some good things,” said Karg. “We just didn’t do them for 60 minutes.”
Meanwhile, Steam head coach Steven Jerry called upon backup quarterback Al Clark after starter Chris Sanders went down midway through the second quarter with a first degree MCL sprain. After going into the half with the score knotted at 20-20, Jerry called upon his defense to put away the Pioneers.
“All of our [second half] corrections were defensive,” Jerry said. “We weren’t getting enough pressure in the first half so we really jumped our guys about getting pressure and getting in there.”
Though the Steam came through with the big plays when they needed to, Karg believes that it is the big plays that the Pioneers are lacking.
“We’re not capitalizing on big play opportunities,” said Karg. “We’re dropping touchdowns.”
Pioneers quarterback Tyler Tomich also agrees with Karg. “It seems like we’re not making the big plays like they do,” Tomich said.
With the 0-5 start, Karg feels that it is getting tougher every week to keep the players upbeat, however, he knows that he has the players to be successful and is not giving up all hope.
“I’m not giving up,” said Karg. “I’ll be here tomorrow getting ready for Rochester and trying to shape the team up.”
Tomich also believes that the team must move on to prepare for the remaining divisional games.
“We’ve got to put this game behind us, review the film, learn from it, and get better,” Tomich said.
The Pioneers will certainly do everything that Tomich said. The real question, however, is how soon can Wilkes-Barre/Scranton execute it. The Pioneers play their next three games on the road, against Rochester, New Haven, and Albany, respectively. When the team returns home on June 1 to play Rochester, everyone should have a pretty good understanding of exactly how the remainder of the season will end up.
Game Notes
Two for one: When Roanoke starting quarterback Chris Sanders went down in the second quarter with a MCL sprain, Steam head coach Steven Jerry turned to backup QB Al Clark. Clark, who was Jerry’s starting quarterback in the beginning of the season, finished the game 13-21 for 127 yards and 1 TD. Clark also added 2 TDs on the ground. After the game, Jerry commented on having two quality quarterbacks on his roster. “I’m very fortunate to have two kids who are capable to start and lead this team to victory,” Jerry said. Jerry added that most af2 teams only have one reliable quarterback and that they don’t have the luxury of having two solid quarterbacks like the Steam have.
Kicker on a mission: Pioneers kicker Jimmy Kibble is a man on a mission. His mission: to conquer the First Union Arena. Unlike most arenas, the scoreboard and rafters in the First Union Arena are unusually low, which presents a problem for most kickers who are trying to adjust to the indoor game. Adding to the challenge of the Pioneers’ home field is the ‘unique’ placement of a set of speakers just above the center of the field goal posts on each end of the field. Kibble in particular is a huge fan of those speakers. His first field goal attempt as a Pioneer would have sailed through the uprights dead center. However, the speakers had other plans by rejecting his kick. Since his “baptism by fire” debut, Kibble has adjusted rather quickly to the arena. “I think I’m starting to conquer this place,” said Kibble. “My kickoffs I felt a lot more comfortable about and I’m starting to kick the ball higher. I think I’m getting the hang of this place. The more practice I get in here the more confident I get.” But Kibble also added that he’d still like to get rid of those speakers.
The nail biter: Late in the fourth quarter with Roanoke leading by 11 points, the Steam were faced with a 4&1 on the Pioneers 4 yard line. Instead of opting for the field goal, which would have put the Steam up by 14 points, Roanoke head coach Steven Jerry opted to go for the first down. The play turned out to be the nail in the coffin for the Pioneers. On the play, quarterback Al Clark ran a sneak that took the Steam down to the 1-yard line. On the next play Clark ran the football again for a touchdown. When asked about why he opted to go for the first down instead of the field goal, Jerry responded by saying that he let his team make the call. “I believe in my team and when my teams tell me that they want to do something, even when it’s not logical or when it’s against the norm, I’m going to do what they ask,” Jerry said. “I’m a big believer in players play. There are times when players play and coaches coach, and there are times when coaches coach and there are times when coaches shut up. If I had kicked that, it would have been a lack of confidence on my part showing in them. So I actually let them call it, and they went for it and they got it.”
Michael Balakier first discovered a knack for writing during his senior year in high school while reporting for his school`s newspaper. Aside from being an Arenaball fan, Michael is an avid Syracuse University athletics follower, which poses a problem for him, as he attends the University of Pittsburgh. Michael plans on using what he has learned through his Arenafan experience to remain as impartial as he can during future Syracuse/Pitt events. Michael also serves as co-Editor of the af2 section of Arenafan Online.
