Westmoreland high school football notebook: Yough’s Kuroda stands out in loss

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Saturday, September 28, 2024 | 4:17 PM

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Raidon Kuroda is a unique name. You remember it after you hear it.

His performance Friday night also was pretty memorable, even though Yough lost in the closing seconds to Mt. Pleasant, 22-19, at Cougar Mountain Stadium.

Kuroda, the Cougars’ 6-foot-1, 210-pound senior quarterback, accounted for 319 yards of offense and three touchdowns, nearly leading his team to a win in the Class 3A Interstate Conference opener.

“He’s a heck of a player,” Mt. Pleasant coach Jason Fazekas said. “A big, strong kid. He made some plays.”

Said Yough athletic director Jim Schaffer: “He’s a football player.”

Kuroda completed 16 of 33 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns, including a go-ahead score with 4 minutes, 50 seconds left to Jaiden Dixon-Bretzel to give the Cougars a 19-14 lead.

Mt. Pleasant, though, scored with 14 seconds left to escape with the win.

“Mt. Pleasant is a tough team, and they didn’t give up,” Kuroda said. “We were in a position to win that game. My guys have the biggest hearts of anyone I know. This game is like a win and a loss. We came so close but we fell short. We’ll see how we (react) from here.”

Yough, which started 2-0 this year for the first time since 2013, is showing improvement. The Cougars (2-4, 0-1) rallied to take their first lead late, with Kuroda making some strong throws downfield to Ryan Sarver and Dixon-Bretzel.

A hook-and-lateral play gained 45 yards. Kuroda through to Sarver, who pitched to Dixon-Bretzel.

“Our offensive coordinator, Casey Teagarden, gets credit for that one,” Yough coach Ben Hoffer said. “We repped it all week. The hook-and-sugar. It worked well. We almost scored on it.”

A couple of dropped passes in the end zone were a tough pill to swallow, but the Cougars knew they still had a shot, despite some miscues.

“All the guys are emotional because of the chance they had,” Hoffer said. “It’s tough. They battled, and I am really proud of their effort. We have to keep working and continue to be positive.”

Kuroda also had five tackles and a sack on defense.

Close quarters

Mt. Pleasant is getting used to tight games. It’s becoming the team’s M.O.

“You take a win how you can get it, especially in this conference,” coach Jason Fazekas said.

The Vikings have played four games decided by three points or less, two of which went to overtime.

The Vikings (3-3, 1-0) have scored 138 points and allowed 143.

Down by five with less than five minutes to play Friday, the Vikings used a 15-play 73-yard drive to score the game-winning touchdown. Steve Predajna stretched the ball over the 1-yard line with 14 seconds left in a 22-19 win over Yough.

He also scored the winner in a 36-35 win over Greensburg Central Catholic.

The Vikings got into a rhythm and pulled out another nail-biter.

“We knew we still had time to score,” running back Brody Hutter said. “Our two-minute offense is always productive. And our defense stepped up.”

Smith shines

Southmoreland freshman quarterback Anthony Smith had a career night in a 31-14 win against Derry.

He completed 16 of 25 throws for 296 yards and four touchdowns.

His top receiver, Elliot Premus, had seven receptions for 155 yards and two scores. Jackson Mickens added three catches for 100 yards.

The Scotties are 5-1 overall and 1-0 in the Class 3A Interstate Conference.

A night off

Some key local players sat out Friday with injuries.

Penn State commit Alex Tatsch did not play in a 30-20 loss to Woodland Hills, a week after he sat out the second half against Armstrong with shoulder pain.

Belle Vernon was missing key injured starters Alonzo Wade and Deaubre Lightfoot in a 42-14 loss to rival Thomas Jefferson.

Fit for a king

Penn-Trafford running back Tasso Whipple not only rushed for 163 yards and three touchdowns, including runs of 56 and 68 yards in a 34-10 win over Plum, but he also was named the homecoming king alongside this year’s queen, soccer standout Rease Solomon.

Local matchups

Next week’s schedule offers the most fan-friendly set of games this season.

All-local matchups next Friday include Norwin at Hempfield, Jeannette at Greensburg Central Catholic, Mt. Pleasant at Greensburg Salem, Yough at Southmoreland, Penn-Trafford at Gateway and Kiski Area at Latrobe.

Norwin coach Mike Brown used to coach Hempfield. Penn-Trafford coach John Ruane teaches at Gateway. And Jeannette and GCC have players who share the same ZIP code.

Extra points

Kyle Dupill of Franklin Regional ran for 217 yards Friday, his 11th career 100-plus-yard rushing game. … Kiski Area quarterback Carson Heinle became the Cavaliers’ all-time passing leader with 3,753 yards. He passed Kiski Area hall of famer Josh Vick (3,565), who played at New Hampshire and Cornell. … John Wetzel of Latrobe had a career-high 34 carries Friday for 218 yards and two touchdowns. … McKeesport’s Kemon Spell and Anthony Cromerdie combined for 265 yards rushing in a 54-7 win over Hampton on, get this, five carries. All five went for touchdowns. … Hempfield had two fumble return touchdowns in its 33-27 win over Canon-McMillan in overtime, by Andrew Jones and Jack Kopus.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Hempfield, Latrobe, Mt. Pleasant, Norwin, Yough