The Cranston East football team held on to beat Shea 22-14 to pick up its first league win since 2018.

The Bolts mounted a 22-6 lead with 6:54 remaining in regulation, but the Raiders would pull themselves back into it when they blocked a punt and returned it the distance to make it 22-14 with 2:51 on the clock. Shea then forced another three-and-out, and would block its second straight punt and recover the ball at the East 38-yard line with 1:25 remaining.

The Bolts defense came up with multiple stops as the rain picked up and the East seniors got to win their first league game on Senior Night.

“This means everything. Over the past four years, there have been no weeks off, no breaks, just work, work, work every week. We just had to lock in. We were in that situation last year, up against South Kingstown 24-6 and couldn’t close out the game. This time, six minutes to go, we just said, ‘Let’s finish this off and do it for the seniors, do it for the program.’ Now, next year they can start off fresh and have a taste of winning. It’s been great being with them, building and growing as a team,” said senior captain A’Driahn Foreman.

After a scoreless first quarter, the Bolts scored first when quarterback Jayden Chagnon connected with Armand Northup-Reed for a touchdown, followed by a 2-point rush by Foreman to make it 8-0. The Raiders scored but failed on the 2-point attempt, then East blocked a Raider field goal attempt to hold onto the slim lead heading into halftime.

Saqari Monroe hauled in a touchdown and a 2-point conversion with less than a minute to go in the third quarter to give the Bolts the 16-6 lead. Jovany Gonzalez would then haul in an interception to give the East offense another try, and it would deliver as Foreman ran for another score. Monroe also recovered a fumble in the first quarter for East.

“The message was to go out and take it. We’ve sat back at times this year so we had to go out and take it. We fought through it and I told them, ‘If you want to win, you’re going to have to go and take it.’ That was the rallying cry this week,” said East coach Isaiah McDaniel, who also earned his first league win. McDaniel celebrated his birthday earlier in the week and told his team a win would be the best present he could receive.

Foreman and Monroe have developed into a strong 1-2 punch for the East offense.

“We play for one another. This is my first year here from North Carolina so I’m just trying to make a name for myself out here. I’m glad to play with this teammate,” said Monroe.

McDaniel was also excited to see them break loose in the win.

“Those two run so hard and they’re hard to tackle. They put the team on their back tonight, they’ve put the team on their back all season. They’ve done a great job leading by running the football and I’m so proud of them for the way they responded tonight,” said McDaniel, who was also happy for his senior class. “It means a lot to have them be able to get this one before they leave.”