Announcement
From the GAZETTE: By Rick Noland, Asst. Sports Editor
Buckeye's Darren Cereshko bruised his back early, but he came back to break Black River's late.
As a result, the Bucks rallied for a thrilling 10-9 win over the Pirates on Friday, meaning the two county teams will share the Mohican Area Conference championship.
"Darren is unbelievable," Buckeye coach Chris Medaglia said. "If he's not a first-team Division III all-state cornerback, I don't know who is."
I don't, either. Cereshko isn't the biggest or fastest or strongest player in the county, but only Wadsworth's Paul Macko, who has scored touchdowns five different ways, comes close to matching the 5-foot-11, 170-pounder in the big-play department.
What makes Cereshko's ability to heavily influence the outcome of games more remarkable is he plays wide receiver on offense in addition to cornerback, not the two easiest spots to dominate a game, especially in high school.
Yet there he was against Black River recovering a fumble, intercepting three passes and catching another (a 54-yard TD reception was called back due to a penalty).
The fumble recovery, which occurred at the Black River 16 with 3:38 to play and set up Ryan Hoover's game-winning field goal, might have been the biggest play in a game filled with big plays.
It didn't require an exceptional effort on the part of Cereshko, who dove on the loose pigskin after Black River fumbled it twice, but the kid simply has a knack for being in the right place at the right time.
"A lot of people say they'd rather be lucky than good," Medaglia said. "I'd rather be good. If I'm good, I'm going to perform. Darren is good."
Good might be an understatement given that Cereshko now has 12 interceptions this season, bringing him within four of what many thought was an untouchable Buckeye record — Scott Farren's 16 picks in the 1987 season.
Nothing against Farren, who was exceptional at reading a quarterback and coming down with the ball, but Cereshko is a much more complete player.
Of course, the humble and softspoken junior would never say that.
"I can't explain it," he said of his big-play ability. "I'm just always there."
That was the case once again late in the game against the Pirates, as Cereshko preserved the win by getting his final interception with 1:27 to play.
That helped atone — one last time — for an early Cereshko fumble on a punt return, on which he hurt his back and went to the sideline for a few plays.
"For some reason, I knew we'd pull it off," Cereshko said. "It was just a gut feeling."
It was more than a gut feeling. Cereshko, as always, had his team's back. And on this night, he broke Black River's.
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