A healthy Hendricken team is going to be tough to beat.

Since falling at La Salle in double overtime without Preston Santos on Jan. 6, the Hawks have rattled off eight straight league wins – blowing out Barrington 80-47 on Wednesday night before cruising past South Kingstown on Friday.

Since that tough loss against the Rams, Santos has returned, and he is close to fully healthy. That was easy to see on Wednesday, as he was a visible mismatch for the Eagles with his athleticism.

The sophomore standout poured in 20 points, 12 in the second half, to go along with 13 rebounds.

Not to be outdone was junior captain Justin Mazzulla, who went off in the first half for 20 points. He would finish with a double-double of his own with a game-high 24 points and 11 boards.

Mazzulla and Santos, in particular, had a size advantage over Barrington, and that was something that Hendricken utilized early and often, resulting in a 44-26 Hawks’ lead by halftime.

“We had the size and athletic advantage today, so our goal was to get as many 2-point shots and shots around the basket as we could,” Hendricken head coach Jamal Gomes said. “For the most part, I think we did that. We have to work on our post passing because some of our turnovers came from us trying to get it in there, but overall, the effort was tremendous.”

Barrington came out of the gates shooting well in the first half, but it didn’t take long for Hendricken to weather the early storm and create some separation on the scoreboard.

Just over two minutes in, Trevor Lawton found Dimitri Rosa under the basket, who got fouled while making a shot from in close. Rosa sunk the free throw to give the Hawks a 7-6 lead.

The Eagles would hang around for a few more minutes, but a steal and score by Kyle Henseler pushed Hendricken ahead, 16-15, near the 9-minute mark – taking a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.

From there, Mazzulla completely took over, hitting the offensive glass for second-chance opportunities.

With 2:15 to go in the opening half, Henseler sent an easy entry in to Mazzulla, who spun off his defender for a deuce to give Hendricken a 38-20 lead.

In the final minute, Mazzulla added insult to injury when he isolated a defender and pulled up for a dagger 3-pointer to give the Hawks a 44-26 advantage at the break.

Mazzulla continues to step up for Hendricken on and off the court as a leader.

“I thought Justin was a warrior,” Gomes said. “He’s a leader – we had a vote for captains and he was unanimous. As a junior, that says a lot. That tells you how much his teammates respect him, and he brings that every day to practice. If someone’s not working out or if someone isn’t doing what they’re supposed to do, he gets on them. When your point guard is like another coach on the floor, it’s a beautiful thing.”

After halftime, it was the Santos show.

He hit the offensive glass right away, tipping in a missed jumper to extend the lead to 20.

In all, Santos compiled 12 points and six rebounds to pace the Hawks in the second half.

It wasn’t just Mazzulla and Santos, though. Everything was going down for Hendricken.

With 8:09 remaining, Lawton dished to a wide-open Henseler, who drained a 3 to balloon the lead to 65-39. Henseler would finish in double-figures with 14 points – good for third on the team.

Sharpshooter Rosa found his stroke in the second half, as well, knocking down a pair of triples. He was the only other Hawk in double-figures with 11.

For Barrington’s limited offense, it was paced by eight points apiece from Cameron Reilly and Michael Coogan.

Hendricken was back in action on Friday night when it hosted South Kingstown, gliding past the Rebels for a 62-38 victory behind a game-high 21 points from Mazzulla.

The Hawks will continue league action at home on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. against Woonsocket, as they look for their ninth consecutive victory.

Maybe that loss to La Salle was a good thing for Hendricken. It looks as if the bump in the road has only made the team stronger.

“This team has heart,” Gomes said. “Whoever we play, we’re going to battle, we’re going to fight. We’re going to bend, but we’re not going to break. Win or lose, we’re not going to break. That’s what I love about our team – our team last year didn’t always have that.”