Bethlehem Catholic’s goal each week is to focus on the process of being the best team they can be. The Hawks kicked off the Tyler Ward era with the type of result everyone looks for in week one following a 28-0 road victory over Pleasant Valley.

Becahi’s young roster got the type of result they were hoping to find and Ward earned his first win as head coach of the program to help cap off a successful week one.

“I think the biggest thing we’re happy we came away with a win,” said Ward. “So many kids got their first start of varsity action. We made some mistakes that limited us, but we kind of expected that with a young group. We played hard and the defense flew to the ball. I was pleased with the effort and the outcome.”

Becahi outgained Pleasant Valley by a 303-to-147 margin with sophomore quarterback Cayden Vassa throwing for a 131 yards and a touchdown. He threw a 51-yard TD strike to Mekhi Lapierre to opening up the scoring and added a four-yard rushing score in the second quarter to build a 14-0 advantage at halftime.

“Caden is a sophomore and he’s probably the calmest kid on the team,” said Ward. “He doesn’t get rattled and makes smart decisions. He’s good at managing the game and putting the ball where it needs to be.”

The Hawks totaled 171 yards on the ground led by Jacob Sutton’s 111 yards. He ripped off a 66-yard rushing score in the third quarter, breaking numerous tackles and showing off elite speed in a sprint to the endzone. With a young offensive line, Ward wanted to focus on the run game in week one to see how they handled different scenarios.

“Wanted to give them a lot of work with the run game and get their feet wet with some action,” he said. “We focused on running things in the middle and give them some adversity.”

A real test comes this Saturday when they host Whitehall at BASD Stadium. The Zephyrs trounced Allen last week 53-0 and Ward is familiar with new Whitehall head coach Andy Marino and the modern version of offense Whitehall runs, compared to the option system Pleasant Valley runs.

Getting ready for a regular type of offense and playing an EPC South team is something Ward and company are excited about this week.

“Kids will be excited going against a more modern offense compared to the option like Pleasant Valley,” Ward said. “Our kids know the type of challenge the EPC South is and we’re really excited. We want to be a Monday to Friday team and focus on the process, practice and film study. If we do that we have a good chance at being a successful team.”