By RYAN D. MURRAY

The Falcons were blanked 38-0 by the Hawks on Saturday evening during a Division I football showdown at Bishop Hendricken.

Cranston West put in a good effort, however, it was unable to accrue any points.

“We did what we needed to do,” West head coach Tom Milewski said. “But, we had some self-inflicted penalties. And when you play a team like Bishop Hendricken, you can’t give them extra chances. The kids battled, which is good. We came out on the short end of it.”

Hendricken junior David Lynch made his first varsity start at quarterback because Zach Lavergne was unavailable.

“First varsity game I thought he was great,” Hawks head coach Keith Croft said. “He did everything we asked him to do. He was a leader in the huddle, happy for him.”

Hendricken received the ball first and John Santos returned the kickoff to the Hawks 35.

Lynch’s second throw of the game, a 15-yard pass, went to Andrew Noland, and the wide receiver brought the ball to midfield.

Lynch found Nolan again on the very next play and this time the junior took the ball to the West 34.

Two plays later, Lynch ran a quarterback sneak to the 18.

Then, senior running back Shyne Fernandes rushed the ball 15 yards to the 3, and then on the next play, took it in for the score. Danny Rice added the extra point after that and gave Hendricken a 7-0 edge.

The Falcons drove 50 yards during their first drive, to the Hendricken 30, but then they turned the ball over on downs to the Hawks.

The Falcons defense was able to stall Hendricken during its ensuing possession when Marcus Chung, a defensive back, picked off Lynch at the West 4. 

“Marcus is a sophomore,” Milewski said. “We expect good things from him next year as a junior.”

Marcus, like his older brother Myles, a senior, plays running back when on offense. Though on defense, Marcus plays at defensive back while Myles plays at linebacker.

“Myles has had a good career,” Milewski said. “He’s been solid for us on defense this year. On offense, he came into his own. He did a nice job for us filling in the holes throughout the season, from start to finish. When we needed something, Myles was our guy to put in there.”

Despite Marcus’s interception, Hendricken increased its lead to 14-0 early in the second quarter when Lynch converted with a 49-yard touchdown pass to Teighan Jeremy, a junior running back, who dodged multiple defenders before finding pay dirt.

The Hawks extended their margin to 17-0 midway through the second quarter when Rice made a field goal from 15 yards out.

Then, with 40.6 seconds left in the half, Lynch passed through the middle to Jeremy for a 59-yard touchdown, the running back’s second score of the game, and that gave Hendricken a 24-0 lead as the teams headed for halftime.

West got the ball first to start the third quarter, but a high snap to quarterback Brennan Stetson produced a fumble, which was recovered by Hendricken’s Shyne Fernandes at the West 28.

Two plays later, Isaiah Emmanuel, the Hawks senior star running back, rushed 21 yards to pay dirt and extended the Hendricken buffer to 31-0.

With 3:25 left to play in the game, Synsere Fernandes, a junior, rushed 38 yards up the gut and into the end zone and ballooned the Hendricken lead to 38-0.

West finishes the season with a record of 1-4 and falls short of clinching a playoff berth.

The Falcons started the game off with Kris Degaitas at quarterback before moving him to wide out and moving Stetson from running back to quarterback. Stetson also has spent time at linebacker.

“He’s kind of our Jack of all trades on offense,” Milewski said. “He plays a little slot, plays a little running back, quarterback. He’s got energy... He’s got a motor… He‘s a football player. So, he’s kind of our rally guy… He’s been a pleasure to coach the last four years.”

Degaitas too, has been an integral part of the team over the course of his four-year career.

“He’s our emotional leader,” Milewski said. “He’s a very good receiver. We used him at quarterback in different packages, but we’re best with him at receiver. So, most of the night tonight he stayed at receiver. And it was just the best place to put him. He just works hard. I’ll tell you what, that kids a winner. He’s going to be successful in the future. He’s just a great kid. He’s been a pleasure to coach also.”