It could be the start of a challenging stretch run through the middle of the season for Bethlehem Catholic's football team. The Hawks enjoyed a 46-6 thumping over Pocono Mountain West last week, as their starters played a half and got the rest of the game off.

Freddie Simmons enjoyed a stellar first half, returning three punts for scores and hauling in a 35-yard TD pass in the first quarter as Becahi built a 40-6 halftime lead.

The win pushes the Hawks to 3-0 on the season, but battling teams like Pocono Mountain West (0-3) isn't the ideal setting that head coach Joe Henrich is hoping for every week.

As Becahi moves into the middle portion of their season, questions will arise about how the Hawks will manage the stretch through the East Penn Conference's North Division.

With East Stroudsburg South(1-2) on the docket this week, Henrich knows he's getting a traditionally solid program visiting Bethlehem Saturday night, but the Cavs are certainly in a rebuilding type of year, as they fell last week to Stroudsburg 21-0.

"Generally, you can argue that East Stroudsburg South has been one of the most consistent teams up there," Henrich said. "They're a bit inexperienced this season, but you see they have some nice pieces up front and some athletes as well. The biggest thing for us is to stay focused and have our guys prepare properly every week. It's not ideal to have your starters only play a half and that's certainly something that we've been thinking about as we move forward this season."

Outside of this week's affair, the Hawks continue play against Dieruff (2-1), East Stroudsburg North (1-2), Pocono Mountain East (0-3), Stroudsburg (3-0) and Allen (0-3), before finishing the season with Central Catholic (1-2).

Not to disrespect any of their upcoming opponents, outside of their regular season finale against the Vikings, but going through most of this stretch run could be monotonous for Becahi, as they will be favorites every week.

"It was good to see some of our young guys gets reps last week," he said, "but at the same time, you don't want to be resting guys that much. "It's going to be something we have to monitor moving forward, as keeping our guys focused is the biggest priority. It's tough when you deal with teenagers and you tell them those things, because you never really know where their heads are at. We know as a coaching staff, all these games are important, but you never know how kids will look at these games."

As the Hawks prepare to tussle this week, Henrich and his staff may be realizing that playing in the North Division has it's pluses and minuses. The advantage for a team like Becahi, in their present state, is that they shouldn't have many problems grabbing victories, but the downside is how these games will prepare his team as they head into the postseason.

"It's easier said than done when you're talking about making sure the kids are mentally prepared," said Henrich. "This week will be another test for us and we just need to be ready, because we know all these teams from up north are looking to knock us off."