Philadelphia, PA- After a loss last Friday to the La Salle Explorers, the St. Joe’s Prep Hawks looked to rebound Wednesday afternoon against another Catholic League team, the Crusaders of Father Judge. This was an important game not only to fix some of the mistakes from Friday, but it was also senior night for the team.

Prior to the start of the game, the Hawks had a special ceremony in which all of the seniors on the team were introduced with a highlight of their time with the team and where they will be heading next year.  They walked out onto the field with their parents who were also recognized and presented a rose from their son. While the seniors were recognized prior to the game for their dedication to the program, it was easy to recognize their leadership on the field in the game and throughout the season.

The Hawks second line was able to net two more before the Crusaders were able to get on the board midway through the first. However, the Hawks answered right back with 4 more goals all from the senior leaders on the team.

As the game moved into the second quarter of the play, the Crusaders found themselves down 8-1, and the Hawks showed no signs of slowing down. Yet another Prep senior, Griffin Flemming, added two back to back goals to put the Hawks up 10-1. Following the senior models, attackmen Finn Monahan and Pat Boyd were able to get on the board. At the end of the half The Prep led Father Judge 14-1.

Moving into the second half of play, the Hawks just looked to possess the ball. None of The Prep’s success would have been possible without an excellent job at the face-off X and a lock down defense. At the X senior, Bernie Halfpenny, stepped up and won the Hawks 12 out of 14 face-offs. These possessions were not won without some help. Senior, Bern McGinn, racked up an incredible 9 ground balls on the wing to help aid the Hawks in the victory. In addition to Bern’s presence on defense, the Crusaders had a tough time getting shots by both goalies, Sean Lyons and Nick Cissone.

In the fourth and final quarter of play The Prep’s offense continued to possess the ball well and their defense held strong – only letting Father Judge score once more to get their second of the game. Eddie Morris for the offense and Tom Sweeney for the defense, were two seniors who really stepped up their game on their special night for the Hawks. Final Score: 18-2 Hawks.

After the game, Hawks head coach Sean Delaney talked about how the afternoon unfolded in the Hawks favor. He was happy about the way his team responded to the adjustments made since their last game.

“We must continue to get 1% better everyday,” Delaney relayed to the team right after the win.

Both teams look to use the game as a building experience as they prepare for the Philadelphia Catholic League playoffs which are just a couple weeks away.