3A top-ranked Peoria Notre Dame ousted

Updated: March 24, 2011 3:58PM

PEORIA – Just as in Class 4A, the undefeated No. 1 team in Class 3A was eliminated Tuesday night as Peoria Central defeated Peoria Notre Dame 51-46 in a sectional semifinal at Bradley University.

Central, the 2003 and 2004 Class AA state champion, avenged 11- and six-point defeats to the Irish by jumping out 12-2 after one period and repelling an Irish comeback.

Deontray Dorsey, a 5-foot-8 senior guard, led the Lions with 25 points. A transfer from Peoria Woodruff, which closed this year, Dorsey broke a 46-all tie with a nice assist to fellow senior Travis Kellum with 40 seconds left. Dorsey then sealed the fate of ND (28-1) with two free throws at :16.6.

Notre Dame's Max Bielfeldt battled his way to 16 points, eight below his average. Bielfeldt had his shot blocked four times and was short on a 10-footer that would have tied the game at the 20-second mark.

Notre Dame, which often plays four guards around Bielfeldt and relies heavily on three-pointers, did not make a three until 3:30 remained and finished with two.

Central, champions of the East Aurora holiday tournament, improves to 19-8. It will meet Rock Island in the Friday final at BU's Renaissance Coliseum if the third-ranked Rocks are able to get by long-shot Morris in Wednesday's semifinal.

© 2012 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be copied or distributed without permission. For more information about reprints and permissions, visit www.suntimesreprints.com. To order a reprint of this article, click here.