Bishop Hendricken’s run ended in the Division I Super Bowl. Barrington’s defense made sure of that.

With its defensive line helping limit the Hawks to just 78 yards of total offense, Barrington capitalized on good field position, controlled the clock and shut out the Hawks 21-0 to capture the program’s second D-I title in five years.

Saturday’s loss was Hendricken’s only shutout of the season and marked the team’s first setback since losing to La Salle on Oct. 9. The Hawks finished the regular season on a six-game winning streak, which included a 14-0 win over Barrington, and they went on to defeat La Salle 35-34 in double overtime last week. Hendricken’s running game was the common thread that weaved through that string of consecutive victories but, when the Eagles took that threat away, the rest of the Hawks’ offense went with it.

“Barrington really did some things well defensively,” Hendricken coach Keith Croft said. “Their defensive line flat out controlled the line of scrimmage and they outplayed our offensive linemen on a consistent basis. That caused problems in our running game and, to be successful this time of year, you need a strong running game.”

The Hawks’ ground attack had risen to become one of the most potent in the state toward the end of the regular season. Senior running back Mike Flanagan ran for 109 yards and combined with Ethan Ferreira for a pair of rushing touchdowns in the team’s 21-14 win over St. Raphael and Flanagan added another 121 yards and two scores in the Hawks’ 28-7 victory over East Providence in the league finale. Hendricken’s running backs accounted for four touchdowns on Thanksgiving against Toll Gate and carried that success into the playoffs, where Flanagan’s 115 yards and three touchdowns spearheaded another impressive night for the Hawks’ backfield in the win over La Salle.

Barrington learned from Hendricken’s previous victims and took those lessons to heart. The result was the most complete defensive effort any team has put up against the Hawks’ this season. Hendricken couldn’t gain momentum as Flanagan led the way with 29 yards on 12 carries. Ferreira managed six yards on five attempts.

“They didn’t run the ball very well at all,” Barrington coach Bill McCagney said. “We controlled the line of scrimmage and wore them down. We’d been taking it one game at a time so we didn’t really have much time to prepare for them. We didn’t have much of a game plan and we didn’t do anything fancy: our guys just rose up and kept their running game down.”

Without its signature running game to set the tone, Hendricken’s offense faltered. The Hawks compiled just 32 yards of offense and totaled two first downs in the first half.

“To be successful this time of year, you need a strong running game,” Croft said. “And it had been strong for us. During that two-month streak our running game carried us. Unfortunately Barrington just outplayed us. I don’t think it was anything that we did wrong. Their kids just outplayed us.”

While Barrington’s defense was holding down the Hawks, Hendricken’s defense was returning the favor as the two sides battled for field position in the first half. Neither team ventured inside the opposition’s red zone until the Eagles’ final possession before halftime, when they used an 18-play drive to chew up the final seven minutes of the second quarter. The Eagles pushed down to the Hawks’ 13-yard line and set up kicker Brandon Lewis for a last-second field goal, but Hendricken’s Rob Manning raced around the right edge and blocked the kick to keep the game scoreless at the break.

“That was a great play,” Croft said. “But, that being said, we were still concerned at halftime with how ineffective we had been offensively. We never got into a rhythm and we never threatened them. At that point we were hoping that our defense and special teams could keep it close.”

That hope was dashed quickly on the second-half kickoff. Hendricken sophomore William L’Europa fielded a short kick near the 35-yard line but couldn’t maintain possession. Barrington junior Hunter Tannock raced in to scoop up the fumble, giving the Eagles the ball on the 30. The Eagles pushed 29 yards on the next four plays to take it down to the 1, where Hendricken’s defense made one last stand.

The Hawks stuffed Barrington running back Mike Read on fourth-and-goal from the 1, forcing a turnover on downs. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against the Eagles moved the ball out to the 15, but Hendricken’s offense couldn’t sustain that momentum. Three plays later, the Hawks were punting again.

Hendricken punter Benjamin Barrett set up in front of his own end zone and was just getting the kick away when Barrington sophomore Jackson Ryan broke through the line and blocked it. Eagles senior Adam Toman recovered the ball in the end zone and Lewis added the extra point to give Barrington a 7-0 lead.

“That play took the wind out of our sails,” Croft said. “Both sides were playing such good defense and at that point our kids felt like seven points was a lot to come back from. We knew that their offense was having trouble, but so were we. That play was a big momentum swing and made it an uphill battle for us.”

The Hawks’ climb got a lot steeper in the fourth quarter. After Barrington forced a turnover on downs on the 29-yard line, the Eagles executed an eight-play, 71-yard drive that ended on a 35-yard run by fullback David Silvia that made the score 14-0.

Barrington forced Hendricken to punt on its next possession and Read took over to lead the Eagles’ final assault of the afternoon. He carried six of the next eight plays and punched in Barrington’s final touchdown on a 4-yard run. It was the last of 31 carries for Read, the state’s Gatorade Player of the Year, and he finished with 159 yards. The last score put Barrington on top 21-0 with less than three minutes to play.

“They’re very difficult to defend,” Croft said. “They have three guys on offense with Silvia, Read and [Marc] DeSisto. They can break from any point on the field and that is tough to defend against. We feel like we have pretty good team speed but their speed is a little better than ours. They have a potent offense.”

Barrington’s running backs finished with 266 combined yards while the Hawks tallied 22 rushing yards on 24 carries. Hendricken quarterback Tom Verdi was 5-for-8 passing for 24 yards but Manning led the team in yardage, picking up 32 on one passing attempt.

Saturday’s loss ended an impressive year for the Hawks, who started the season 1-3 before winning seven in a row down the stretch.

Hendricken has now reached the Division I Super Bowl in three of the last four years but has not been able to come away with a win, suffering defeats against East Providence (2006), St. Raphael (2008) and now Barrington.

“We’re obviously very disappointed to lose,” Croft said. “But my kids played their hearts out and they have nothing to be ashamed of. Barrington finished in first place for a reason: they were the best team in the league. We lost to a better team and there is no shame in that.”

The Hawks will graduate 19 seniors from this year’s team, a group that had a special connection with the coaching staff. This year’s seniors were the last to play under Croft when he served as freshman coach before taking over the varsity program in 2007. He cited their leadership as the driving force behind Hendricken’s championship appearance this year and is calling on the next class to carry on that tradition.

“This is the kind of group that every coach uses as an example of how to play the game,” Croft said. “They did things the right way, they worked hard and they were respectful. We’re losing a phenomenal senior class but we’re also happy with what’s coming back. We had a lot of juniors that got experience this year and we had some sophomores that showed some real promise. We’re going to start building for next year right away.”