Hole in engine case. Conrod broke

I ran over a piece of plastic about 10cm accidently, by the time I realized I thought it would be fine but then engine made a bang and stopped. Showed someone a pic and they said conrod broke. Could plastic go in the gap where the blades spin and cause this , can't be sure if it's stuck in there still as I'm not sure where it is. Briggs and Stratton mower , self propelled less than 1 year old.

Yes