Bishop Feehan defense gives St. Mary’s first loss

ATTLEBORO — Its high-powered offense gets most of the publicity, but on Friday night at McGrath Stadium, it was Bishop Feehan’s defense that shone brightest.

For the second time in three weeks, the Shamrocks (7-1) held an undefeated team without a touchdown as two Nick Bryant interceptions and a fumble return touchdown by Sean Hickey put a pin in St. Mary’s unbeaten regular season, 13-0.

“Those guys have played their best at the most critical time,” Shamrocks coach Bryan Pinabell said of his defense. “They were just outstanding.”

It was a night where both defenses shined as the Spartans (7-1) held Feehan quarterback Owen Mordas to minus-8 yards rushing and picked off two of his passes. Problem for St. Mary’s was that senior tailback David Quinn was there to pick up the slack. Quinn rushed for 116 yards and had the game’s only offensive touchdown on an eight yard run in the second quarter.

Despite that, St. Mary’s coach Sean Driscoll could not have been prouder of his defense’s performance.

“Their effort was unbelievable. They handled some tough situations really well,” Driscoll said.

Mother Nature also had a big hand on Friday as a steady 25 mph wind made passing a challenge all night. It also played havoc on the kicking game.

Aidan Neary missed a 38-yard field goal into the wind on the opening series for Feehan. Then the Spartans picked off Mordas following a punt but could not take advantage.

A short punt at the end of the first gave the Shamrocks the ball at the 38 and they capitalized with an efficient seven-play drive. Quinn carried four times, the last of which made it 6-0 after a missed extra point.

The rest of the half was dominated by the St. Mary’s defense, which picked off Mordas for a second time and stopped a 2-minute drill at the 40 with a sack on the final play of the half.

The Spartan offense put together its best drive of the game to begin the third quarter, reaching the Feehan 37 before turning it over on downs.

It was still 6-0 early in the fourth when the Shamrocks fumbled and St. Mary’s recovered at the Feehan 48.

A 27-yard screen pass to Tyler Guy plus a personal foul got the Spartans into the red zone in a hurry. Prosperity did not last, however, as a chop block backed them up before the Feehan defense delivered a knockout punch.

On fourth down, Yaniel Belliard scrambled but fumbled. Hickey gladly scooped up the loose ball and dashed 66 yards for a game-clinching touchdown.

“St. Mary’s came ready to play and were physical. They gave us fits,” Pinabell said. “Thankfully our defense was outstanding.”