Rushins rushes past St. Mary’s

PEABODY – In his time at Bishop Fenwick, Lynn’s Rufus Rushins has put up numbers that give him a prominent place in the Crusaders’ record book. But even head coach David Woods was hard-pressed to recall a performance that matches what his senior tailback did in a 22-0 win over St. Mary’s at Donaldson Field on Friday night.With a chance to clinch a share of a second straight Catholic Central League/Large title against the rival Spartans, Rushins was a man possessed as he ripped through the St. Mary’s defense. Ruffins rushed for 273 yards and three touchdowns on only 17 carries as the Crusaders (6-0) ran their state-best winning streak to 22.”We came out ready to play,” said Rushins. “We had a couple of good days of practice. We weren’t going to come out flat.”Woods was quick to praise his star runner’s intensity.”That might be the best that Rufus has run in his four years here,” Woods said. “He really had a purpose, and our offensive line was physical. We challenged them this week and they delivered.”The game, however, was a lot closer than the 22-point margin might indicate.Twice in the first half, the Spartans (2-4) drove into position to get points on the board, but the Fenwick defense stood tall and turned them away to preserve a two-score lead at the half. The Crusaders repeated those defensive heroics twice in the second half to thwart any hopes of a comeback.”We did a lot of good things,” St. Mary’s coach Matt Durgin said. “If we could have finished one of those drives off, it might have been a different game. But their defense played really well. We had chances and couldn’t get it in.”The Spartans got the ball to start the game and immediately advanced downfield. A 44-yard dash by Connor Sakowich (16 carries, 105 yards) gave St. Mary’s a first down at the Fenwick 12. The Crusaders’ front then stiffened as four straight running plays gained only seven yards and forced a turnover on downs.Fenwick looked like it was going to go three-and-out, but Matt Renzulli picked up 16 yards on a fake punt to jumpstart the offense. Rushins then ripped through the right side of the line and raced 72 yards to paydirt for a 6-0 Fenwick lead late in the first quarter.St. Mary’s tried to answer quickly as quarterback Antonio Felix’s 60 yard run gave it a first-and-goal at the 9 in the waning seconds of the period.Three plays later, it was fourth-and-goal inside the 2 early in the second when Felix was stuffed on a keeper to thwart another threat..It stayed 6-0 until midway through the second when Fenwick took over at its 49 after a punt. Rushins did the rest as he took a handoff and went 51 yards for his second score of the night and a 14-0 lead after Cody Mullen’s conversion rush.Mullen added an interception on the next series, returning it to the St. Mary’s 49. Fenwick drove to the 10 in the final seconds of the half but four incompletions kept it a 14-0 game at the break.Fenwick drove into the red zone at the beginning of the third quarter, but a fumble inside the 10 gave the Spartans new life. Sakowich and Abraham Toe took turns churning out the yards as St. Mary’s drove down the field as the third quarter ran out. The Spartans eventually reached the Fenwick 34 but the Crusaders forced another turnover on downs.Fenwick iced it with a 2-yard scoring run by Rushins that followed his 46-yard jaunt, on which he carried St. Mary’s defenders the last 10 yards.”Our defense played phenomenal. That’s what championship teams do,” Woods said.