While the Hawthorne Bears started off the season right with wins over Montclair Kimberley Academy (42-14) and Wallington (25-12) to make their record 2-0, they came up short and had a lot of ups and downs later on in the season. They received 4 losses in a row by losing to Butler, Hasbrouck Heights, New Milford and Secaucus. However, the Butler and New Milford games were very close. Despite the 4 losses, the team bounced back winning three in a row by beating Saddle Brook on Homecoming (Friday, 10/10), Weehawken (Friday, 10/17) and Pompton Lakes (Saturday, 10/25) in the NJIC Crossovers to be able to clinch a playoff spot.
Here is a recap of the three game winning streak:
Saddle Brook Game Recap: It was the Bears 3rd home game and it was also Homecoming which was a special event that happened during the game. The Bears were happy to turn things around and received their 1st win for the first time in a month.
Weehawken Game Recap: It was the Bears 4th and potentially, their last home game of the season, as well as it was the first round of the NJIC Crossovers. Once again, the Bears were happy to turn things around for their home crowd and received their 2nd win in a row to bump their record up to 4-4, winning 35-14. Senior QB, Dylan Mejia was a massive key player who once again, helped the Bears to secure the win by throwing for 103 passing yards and rushing for another 140 yards.
Pompton Lakes Game Recap: The Bears traveled to Pompton Lakes to get their 3rd win in a row and clinched a spot in state playoffs. The winning streak is alive and the team bumped their record up to 5-4. Senior QB, Dylan Mejia had 90 passing yards, 91 rushing yards and ran for a 20 yard touchdown run. Senior WR, Anthony Delallo had 63 receiving yards, 3 tackles and 3 assistant tackles. Senior LB, Hugh Shortway had 10 tackles, 3 assistant tackles and a sack. Junior RB, Giovanni Trovato had 25 rushing yards and 20 receiving yards. Finally, Senior Kicker/Punter, Damian Delvalle was basically a key player who helped to secure and save the win for the Bears by forcing a 30 yard field goal to make the score 10-0 halftime.at The final score was 10-7.
Upcoming/This Week: After gaining 3 wins in a row the Bears have officially claimed their opportunity in the state playoffs. On Friday, October 31, the Bears will travel to Butler once again to take on and play against the Bulldogs for the 1st round of the NJSIAA playoffs on Halloween. It is now time for the Bears to get their revenge on the Bulldogs and hopefully bump their record up to 6-4 on the season. They will need a great and hard week of practice in order to make their dreams happen and come true. Head Coach, Angelo Guarnieri is looking forward to getting his first playoff career win after being a defense and assistant coach in the program for 12 years and being the head coach in his 2nd year.