Bears’ Moon runs wild

Nasai Moon is a big play waiting to happen.

And it was just a matter of time before the Pleasant Valley running back went off.

Moon romped to a school-record 328 yards and three touchdowns last Friday against Pocono Mountain East.

Despite the Bears’ 31-21 loss, the performance earned Moon Times Player of the Week honors.

“It was awesome. He’s been close to breaking free,” said Pleasant Valley head coach Matt Kosciolek. “We had a very similar game plan going against Northampton, then in the first quarter he ends up dinging up his elbow, and wasn’t able to finish the game. So to get back on track with what we wanted to do, and especially with Nas, and just finally see him break free, and go off, was awesome for us. It’s a huge morale booster for us, because we’ve been struggling a little bit on offense all season to kind of get something going.

“So for Nas to go off, and have over 300 yards, was just a huge morale booster. You can see it even in practice. We lost a tough one; we felt like we lost that one … we felt like we gave that one away a little bit. But for these guys, as a morale booster, and to have Nas healthy, and going off, we feel like we have a chance again this week and moving forward to be in every game, and hopefully not let any more slip away.”

Looking to ignite the offense, Kosciolek put Moon behind center taking direct snaps, a game plan that paid dividends against the Cardinals.

“The hesitation was, if we just lineup, and keep giving him the ball, we get the stacked box,” Kosciolek said. “But if we can block correctly, it doesn’t matter. All he needs is a crease. So as long as we have a crease, we’re good. And that’s what we found on Friday night.

“We had just enough, with guys getting in the right spot, just get in somebody’s way, and Nas will make something happen.”

Moon, who is third in the area with 666 yards rushing and five scores, found plenty of room to work against Pocono Mountain East.

“Everyone played with 100 percent,” he said. “Even if they did miss a block, they would still finish it off, lay people out, and make room for me to find the hole.

“We’re just going with the flow, and getting into the offensive script, and this is why we almost came out with the win.”

With touchdowns that covered 9, 6 and 72 yards, Moon flashed the power and speed to score from anywhere on the field.

While Kosciolek noted the scheme still needs some fine-tuning, he liked what he saw Friday night.

“It’s a work in progress,” he said. “It wasn’t as smooth as we wanted it to be. But it was a lot better than it was in preseason. If you go back to our very first snap of the season (against Liberty), it was Nas catching the ball, and … he ends up getting tackled in the end zone for a safety.

“To go from that, to this Friday. You talk about progress, it’s night and day.”

The progress has as much to do with Moon’s work ethic as his ability.

“It’s just great to see him get this award because he’s such a great leader, in addition to being a great athlete,” Kosciolek said of Moon.

Moon will not only look to build on his success this week against East Stroudsburg North, but will also try to get the Bears their first win of the season.

“Even though we lost, we still held strong,” he said. “We did everything a lot better than we did last game. We definitely improved with a lot of things, and I know this game (against ES North), we can do a lot better.

“I think we’re definitely on the verge of breaking through for a win. Everyone is still hyped about the last game. Even though we did lose, we also improved.”