PEABODY — The Bishop Fenwick Crusaders (4-0) came to play in front of their home fans, getting the victory over the St. Mary’s Spartans (2-2) by a score of 48-16 on Friday night.
After both teams threw interceptions on their first drives, St. Mary’s quarterback Yaniel Belliard (10-for-12, 97 yards) found Michael Morgan for a 13-yard score to strike first, followed by Tyler Guy’s (80 total yards, INT) two-point conversion to bolster an 8-0 lead.
Fenwick was quick to respond. Captain Luke Connolly (248 total yards, 4 TDs) found his first score of the night with an 8-yard rush, then scored the two-point conversion to tie the game, 8-8.
A quick three-and-out gave the Crusaders possession right back, and just two plays later, Anthony Nichols found a hole and used his speed to find paydirt with a 36-yard touchdown. After the extra point, Fenwick led 15-8 with 7:28 left in the half.
Fenwick got a little help from its special teams as well, getting a blocked punt on St. Mary’s next possession to give the offense strong field position.
This time, it was Connolly’s turn for a long touchdown, as a 26-yard score gave the Crusaders a 21-8 lead late in the second quarter – and Fenwick still wasn’t done scoring.
On its next drive, Brayden Clifford’s (220 total yards, 3 TDs) beautiful pass found a leaping Kurtis Bruch in the back of the endzone. Fenwick took over with a 28-8 lead after its third consecutive scoring drive.
The never-quit Spartans stayed strong through the deficit. As time expired in the first half, Belliard rushed in for a 10-yard score before following it up with a two-point conversion to make it a two-score game going into halftime (28-16).
Unfortunately for the Spartans, that would be it on their end of the scoreboard.
Connolly found the endzone again with a 21-yard receiving touchdown, and after a fumble from both sides and a St. Mary’s punt, Jesse Timson hauled in a 50-yard bomb from Clifford for another score, making it a 41-16 affair.
With 6:03 left in the game, Connolly put the icing on his masterful performance with an 87-yard score, finishing off the Spartans for good.
