Washington comes out hitting as Bonner-Prendergast downs West Catholic

PHILADELPHIA — David Washington delivered a tone-setting tackle on Bonner-Prendergast’s opening kickoff Saturday against West Catholic.

The ball popped out and Washington recovered. It should have been a fumble, but the officials ruled the West Catholic player down by contact.

No problem for Washington. He was just getting started. The first crunching tackle was a preview of what Washington had to offer at th South Philadelphia Supersite.

“I know that part of being a leader is setting the tone,” said Washington, a ripped 6-2, 195-pound senior tight end/defensive end. “If I go out and do it, I know it’s going to motivate someone else to do it and go all out.”

Washington was a terror on defense and made his presence felt on the offensive side of the ball as the Friars downed West Catholic, 28-6, in a Philadelphia Catholic League Blue Division contest.

Washington, senior end Myles Reynolds and senior linebacker Scott Bernhard-Kyle were among the standouts for the Friars. Damir Williams-Bey intercepted Burrs quarterback Kal-el Durham in the first half, and Armon Mapp took a 69-yard kick return to the house to begin the third quarter. The Friars were buzzing on defense most of the game, nearly recording their first shutout of the season. It was the third time in five games Bonner-Prendie has allowed seven points or fewer.

“We have been working hard and we go out and battle every day,” Washington said.

Washington racked up three sacks against the Burrs quarterback tandem of Durham and LJ Bennett.

“Him and Mason (Peterson), those two have been awesome all summer. Even after workouts, I would see those two outside still doing stuff, still working to get better,” Bonner-Prendie coach Jack Muldoon said. “We use (Washington) everywhere. He’s one of the key guys, absolutely. He’s always out there on kickoffs and punts, offense and defense. And this is the second game he’s had like this where he’s just doing everything, from scoring and causing fumbles and getting sacks.”

Washington was on the receiving end of a 22-yard pass from quarterback Shane Mulholland in the second quarter. He was wide open for the catch but had to plow over a defender on the way to the end zone.

Any team that plays Bonner-Prendie knows it has to contain Peterson, the outstanding senior running back who is the Friars’ best offensive weapon. Saturday, he ran for 80 yards, had 80 receiving yards and accounted for the first two BP touchdowns.

He fielded a squib punt at the West Catholic 35-yard line and ran untouched to the end zone to make it 7-0 midway through the first period. In the second quarter, Mulholland (7-for-16, 112 yards, two TDs) connected with Peterson over the middle for 33 yards and a TD.

Muldoon has talked about the need to find a second and third playmaker on offense. Washington is confident that he can fill the role in the passing game.

“Mason can’t do everything,” Washington said, smiling. “I’m comfortable with whatever. Wherever they need me, I’ll play.”

Peterson and the Friars offense were able to take the fourth quarter off after going ahead 28-0. This allowed Muldoon to get a good look at back-ups who might be asked to contribute more in the final five weeks of the season. Avery Hankey added 15 yards on three carries, and TJ Eulett ran for 13 yards on three tries.

“We know we need guys who don’t have that experience to play more for us,” Muldoon said. “It’s a big thing in this sport. It’s hard to take a year off, like a lot of these guys last year, and get that gametime experience after a year off.”

West Catholic lead rusher K’Saan Greene had a productive second half, finishing with 122 yards on 22 carries. The Burrs scored on a quick pass from Bennett to Zymeen Powell, who sprinted 75 yards to the end zone with 5:27 left in the game.

The Friars (4-1) are an improved team from Week 1, when they handled Upper Darby despite some shoddy play on offense. But to have a chance next week against Neumann-Goretti, they have to clean up mistakes on both sides of the ball. The Friars have PCL divisional and PIAA Class 4A title goals, but there’s still plenty of work to be done.

“We have to do a better job taking advantage of other teams’ mistakes and not taking stupid penalties, blocks in the back, stuff like that,” Muldoon said. “If we do that stuff going forward, especially next week, we’ve got no shot.”