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Cardinals football team comes back to beat Bishop Hendricken in matchup’s final minute

Greenwich High School senior wide receiver Blake Martin runs with the ball after making a reception against Bishop Hendricken on Sept. 27, 2024, at Cardinal Stadium. GHS won, 21-20. Photo by Benjamin Harper/Chaos Crew Media

By David Fierro

Greenwich High School quarterback M.J. D’Angelo knew what he had to do when he saw a running lane open up for him during a pass play late in the fourth quarter of Friday night’s showdown against out-of-state opponent Bishop Hendricken and the Cardinals facing a six-point deficit.

“I saw a hole, it was supposed to be a pass play,” said D’Angelo, one of the Cardinals’ captains. “I looked to my right it got all clogged up, I couldn’t see anything. I looked down, there was a huge hole, I took it and scored.”

That score, a 17-yard touchdown run by D’Angelo, tied the game up and when senior Julian Ravina split the uprights with his point-after-attempt, the Cardinals held a 21-20 lead, which they maintained in the matchup’s final minute of action.

D’Angelo ran for two touchdowns and threw a scoring strike and Greenwich put forth another stellar defensive effort in coming back to defeat Bishop Hendricken, the No. 1-ranked team in Rhode Island, 21-20, at crowded Cardinal Stadium. Ranked No. 3 in the GameTimeCT Top 10 Football Poll, Greenwich raised its record to 3-0 with the comeback win in its 2024 home-opener.

“My hats off to Bishop Hendricken, to come all the way down to this game,” Greenwich coach Anthony Morello said. “I am so excited to keep this rivalry going. It came down to the last second, what more can you ask for from a football game? I’m tremendously proud of this football team.”

The first quarter ended with the score tied at 7-7 and that score held up at halftime. Bishop Hendricken held leads of 7-0, 14-7 and 20-14, yet Greenwich came back each time.

“We went down 7-0 and tied the game up,” Morello noted. “When we went down 14-7, we immediately responded to make it 14-14.”

Bishop Hendricken seized a 20-14 lead when Sebastian Lora caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Dylan Lynch with only 2:52 remaining in the fourth quarter. Lora caught the ball near the right sideline and was able to break the pylon for the score. However, Cardinals junior Richie McMurray got his hands up and blocked the ensuing PAT, keeping GHS to within 20-14 as they were set to begin their final drive.

“When he blocked the PAT, you could feel the energy in the building,” Morello said. “The guys answered the call, drove down the field and put it in.”

Indeed, the Cardinals’ offense felt a significant boost of emotion following McMurray’s blocked extra point.

“We had a chance to win it, all we had to do is get a touchdown and extra point,” D’Angelo said.

An impressive return on the ensuing kickoff by Noah Steele gave the hosts good field position on their final possession. D’Angelo capped the drive with his 17-yard scramble for a touchdown, running his way into the left side of the end zone.

“Great teams find a way to win,” Morello noted. “The offense’s ability to respond to a deficit was impressive.”

Rhode Island-based Bishop Hendricken, which has captured R.I. state championships, had a chance to earn the winning score when it took possession with just over one minute left in the final quarter.

Steele, however, sealed the Cards’ win, rising up and intercepting a long Lynch pass with less than a minute remaining.

“I was out two drives before that, coach made an executive decision, then he decided to put me in the last drive, because he knew that I had what it took and I went up – I had to redeem myself,” said Steele, a senior. “I had to bring it to my chest. I knew it was over for us.”

The visitors received the ball to start the game and efficiently drove 80 yards for a touchdown to take a 7-0 advantage. Junior Jeremy Seidi and Jeremy Dennis each gained positive yards on the ground during the drive for Bishop Hendricken, which executed a screen pass to score the game’s first touchdown.

Seidi caught the screen pass from Lynch and took it to the end zone for a 32-yard touchdown. Scott Belford kicked the extra point, giving Bishop Hendricken a 7-0 edge. Greenwich had the perfect response though. Junior Hector Lopez got the Cards’ offense going with several solid runs. D’Angelo, who has used his legs to produce key first downs and touchdowns over the season’s first three games, flourished on the ground again.

Running up the middle, before making a cut to the right, D’Angelo broke loose for a 47-yard touchdown run. Ravina’s successful PAT evened the score at 7-7 with 4:55 left in the opening quarter.

Bishop Hendricken’s next drive stalled courtesy of a sack by Cardinals junior linebacker Santi Parra. The visitors made a significant play on defense when Greenwich took possession, with senior defensive back Nathanel Tarlue intercepting a D’Angelo pass inside the Hawks’ 10-yard line in the second quarter.

The score was knotted at 7-7 after two quarters of action and the visitors went ahead, 14-7, at the 4:08 mark of the third quarter on a 2-yard run by Seidi. Once again, GHS scored the equalizing touchdown.

Greenwich defensive back Noah Steele celebrates after intercepting a pass during a varsity football game against Bishop Hendricken High School at Cardinal Stadium on Sept. 27, 2024. Photo by Benjamin Harper/Chaos Crew Media

D’Angelo dropped back to pass and connected with Lopez, who ran a pass pattern out of the backfield, for a 33-yard touchdown down the left sideline. Ravina’s second PAT made it 14-14 with 3:08 remaining in the third quarter.

“We watched a lot of film on them the last week and we saw that the linebackers were manned up focused on the QB a lot and they just got distracted by the run and he threw the touchdown,” Lopez said of his touchdown reception.

Senior wide receiver Blake Martin also made several key receptions for Greenwich in this physical, back-and-forth matchup.

“It was great, we put on a good show for our town in the first home game,” Martin said. “We struggled a little bit but we picked it up and I’m glad we got the win.”

“It was good competition, Connecticut versus Rhode Island,” Martin continued. “We wanted to make a statement and I think we did.”

D’Angelo pass for 104 yards and added more than 100 rushing yards. For the game, the Cardinals’ rushing attack totaled 200 yards. Senior Peter Vomvolakis, junior Colin Falla, junior Frank Kingsley, junior Henry Wahl and junior Richie McMurray ignited the Cardinals’ ground game with their consistent blocking on the offensive line throughout.

Greenwich’s defensive line – senior Max Marek, junior Jacob Mobley, senior Kyle Ebanks, Vomvolakis and McMurray – was also highly productive.

“We haven’t trailed at all this year, this is the first time we’ve trailed in a football game,” Morello said. “So, it was interesting to see how the guys would respond.”

Said Marek, one of the Cards’ captains: “The entire game we had some times where we could have been better and we came back from those moments. We didn’t give up. On defense, there were many times when we had opportunities to pick a ball off or tackle for loss. The key to the game was believing in ourselves. Believing that if we worked hard, we could be in a position to handle these guys and sure enough, we did. I’m so proud of everyone, because I know how hard they worked and it paid off immensely.”

On Greenwich’s final possession in which it posted the go-ahead touchdown, it displayed composure and poise, despite there being less than three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.

“We have to be able to support our defense,” D’Angelo said. “We have each other’s back. I felt good going into the last drive – no nerves.”

Greenwich returns to FCIAC action when its hosts Danbury on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

“My hat’s off to Bishop Hendricken,” Morello said. “It is so hard to get a read on film because we don’t have the same opponents.”

“We have a lot of thing to fix up, like I said last week, but we’re 3-0 now,” D’Angelo said. “4-0 is the next goal.”

“It was a great game by us, a great game by them,” Lopez said. “They’re a great team, the No. 1 team in Rhode Island, we just came out on top.”

Members of the Greenwich High School varsity football team react after they defeated Bishop Hendricksen at Cardinal Stadium on Sept. 27, 2024. Photo courtesy of Benjamin Harper/Chaos Crew Media
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