Pieruccini leads Dons past St Patrick

Updated: October 22, 2011 12:52AM

Notre Dame quarterback Nick Pieruccini received the loudest cheers for one of his shortest rushing attempts. His one-yard loss on a kneeldown clinched a 24-14 victory over St. Patrick on Friday and possibly the Dons’ sixth consecutive playoff berth.

Pieruccini finished with 151 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries as Notre Dame completed its rally from an 0-3 start to finish 5-4 overall and 4-4 in the East Suburban Catholic Conference.

“This team showed a lot of heart,” Pieruccini said. “We fought back, and now we have a chance to play in the playoffs.” The Dons’ drive toward their fifth win started in positive fashion with

Pieruccini rushed for a five-yard score on the game’s first possession. TheShamrocks (3-6, 2-6) tied it late in the first quarter on Ryan Tentler’s 25-yard touchdown pass to Steve Galiardo.

Tentler finished with 149 yards and Galiardo caught six passes for 61 of those. Notre Dame scored the next 17 points with Chris James capping the run on a two-yard score and a two-point conversion with 2:07 left in the third quarter.

The Dons, though, did make things a little tense when they fumbled after giving up a touchdown midway through the final period, but Dan Proano made a key sack on a corner blitz to help end that drive. Notre Dame managed to run out the clock from there with Nick Lato and Conner Gavin picking up key first downs.

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