Bishop Guertin wide receiver Cody Szymansky tries to elude the Keene High defense after a reception in the second quarter Friday night in Keene. (Michael McMahon / Keene Sentinel)

KEENE — Three weeks in October will decide Bishop Guertin’s playoff fate. The Cardinals could not have kicked off the decisive stretch in a more decisive manner.

Like they’ve done so many times in the past, the Cardinals went into Keene on Friday and made a statement, taking home a 34-14, senior-night-spoiling win in front of a full house at Keene’s Alumni Field. BG has now beaten Keene in seven consecutive seasons.

The win squashed Keene’s three-game winning streak and pushed the Cardinals (4-3 overall, 3-3 in Division I) ahead of the Blackbirds (4-3) in the West conference standings.

“We’re treating this like it’s playoffs from here on out,” said BG head coach Anthony Nalen. “Any loss is probably either dropping in the playoffs or not in the playoffs. So, in that regard, it’s a faceless opponent — you’re just trying to win the next three. But certainly, [Keene] is having a good year and they have some good athletes and are well coached. So, a lot was put into this.”

Quarterback Mike MacDonough scorched the Keene secondary most of the evening. He was 22-for-33 passing with 251 yards and four touchdowns. He overcame two interceptions, both picked off inside the Keene 5-yard line.

Cody Szymansky reeled in two of those touchdowns to help the Cardinals take a 21-7 lead at halftime. He finished with nine catches for 109 yards.

Keene took a 7-0 lead after returning the opening kick past midfield and scoring after a nine-play, 48-yard drive on a Kasen Abbott QB sneak.

After MacDonough was picked off on BG’s first drive, the Cardinals regained possession when Ronan Balistreri forced Keene running back Wyatt Avery to fumble at midfield. Balistreri later reeled in a 20-yard touchdown that gave the Cardinals a 14-7 lead later in the second quarter.

AJ Holmes picked off an Abbott pass in the final minute of the half, leading to Szymansky’s second touchdown, a 14-yard fade to the corner of the end zone. Holmes rushed in from 17 yards out in the third quarter to make it 28-7. MacDonough hit Sam Fayad for a 19-yard touchdown to make it 34-7 in the third.

“We tried to jam their receivers and press them in man and they just schooled us,” said Keene coach Linwood Patnode. “Then we’d slide back into cover 3 or cover 4 and they would hit the little hitches. They had an answer for everything.”

“We have some really good receivers,” said MacDonough. “If we see some matchups we like, we try to take as many shots as we can.

“It was a huge win. It’s the final stretch before playoffs, so we definitely need these last three to help our chances.”