‘We had them right where we wanted them’: QND season ends as lead slips away in final minutes

Quincy Notre Dame football coach Jack Cornell addresses his players after Friday night's 20-17 loss to Bethalto Civic Memorial at Advance Physical Therapy Field. | Photo Courtesy of Erin Schrage

QUINCY — The Quincy Notre Dame team needed just one play to wrap up a first-round victory in the Class 4A playoffs over Bethalto Civic Memorial. The Eagles were facing third and 20 from the QND 33-yard line with less than two minutes to play in the fourth quarter. The Raiders, however, couldn’t come up…

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Kasparie’s three touchdowns, coupled with extraordinary defensive effort, send Raiders into playoffs on high note

Quincy Notre Dame's Jackson Stratton catches a pass as the Raiders finish the regular season with a 6-3 record and await their playoff pairings. Photo courtesy Paul Halfacre

ALTON, Ill. — A solid offensive output in the first half, followed by an extraordinary defensive performance in the second half, was the perfect combination to prime the Quincy Notre Dame football team for the postseason. Senior running back Ben Kasparie scored three touchdowns in the first half, and the Raiders held Alton Marquette to…

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Raiders can’t catch speedy Lutheran St. Charles, suffer third consecutive defeat

Quincy Notre Dame's Zach Friedersdorf races into the end zone with a 10-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter of Friday night's game against Lutheran St. Charles at Advance Physical Therapy Field. Photo courtesy of Ron Kinscherf

QUINCY — Al Davis, the Hall of Fame general manager and owner of the Oakland Raiders, based his philosophy of football on speed. “Speed kills. You can’t teach speed. Everything else in the game can be taught, but speed is a gift from God,” Davis once said. The speed of the Lutheran St. Charles football…

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‘We played flat out terrible’: QND buried by state-ranked Mahomet Seymour in third-quarter avalanche

A host of Quincy Notre Dame players chase Mahomet Seymour's Nolan Nierenhausen during Friday night's game at Advance Physical Therapy Field. Photo Courtesy of Pattie Paxton

QUINCY — The Quincy Notre Dame football team was still in the game. The Raiders trailed 14-0 at halftime, but they forced a three-and-out by Mahomet Seymour on the first series of the third quarter. A poor punt gave QND the ball at the Bulldogs’ 42-yard line. A running play on first down moved the…

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Mater Dei’s passing game shines, Notre Dame’s passing game sputters in road loss

Jake Wallingford (8) looks for room to run after intercepting a pass in the first quarter of Friday night's football game at Mater Dei High School in Breese, Ill. Photo courtesy of Erin Schrage

BREESE, Ill. — Quincy Notre Dame never could find an answer for Breese Mater Dei’s passing combination of Bryce Reverman and Cameron Haag. And for the second consecutive week, the Raiders’ passing game has plenty of questions. Reverman threw four touchdown passes to Haag — three on the same pass pattern — and connected 12…

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Illinois prep football rankings: Hornets firmly at No. 2 in Class 1A, Raiders remain No. 5 in Class 4A

The Brown County football team is ranked No. 2 in Class 1A, while Central is tied for fifth following the Hornets' 22-20 victory over the Panthers last Friday night. Photo courtesy Scott Bemis

Here are the state rankings of Illinois high school football teams in each class heading into Week 5, according to an Associated Press panel of sportswriters: Class 8A School W-L Pts Prv 1. Loyola (9) (4-0) 90 1 2. Naperville Central (3-1) 69 3 3. Naperville Neuqua Valley (4-0) 62 5 4. Chicago Marist (3-1)…

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Raiders score in all three facets of game, stay undefeated by beating Pioneers

Quincy Notre Dame's Nolan Obert recovered a blocked punt for a touchdown to set the tone for the Raiders' 22-6 victory over Duchesne on Friday night. Photo courtesy Brendan Saak

ST. CHARLES, Mo. — Jack Cornell bristles at the notion special teams aren’t prioritized in the same way as offense and defense. At Quincy Notre Dame, they are. “One-hundred percent,” said Cornell, the Raiders’ fourth-year head coach. And for good reason. “We’re not your average football team,” Cornell said. “We’re not trying to be your…

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Illinois prep football rankings: Brown County, Central both rise in Class 1A

After beating Triopia 14-9 last Friday, Cole Behymer, left, and the Brown County football team moved up to a tie for No. 2 in the Class 1A state rankings. Photo courtesy Scott Bemis

Here are the latest rankings of Illinois high school football teams in each class, according to an Associated Press panel of sportswriters: Class 8A School W-L Pts Prv 1. Maine South (8) (3-0) 107 2 2. Chicago (Marist) (1) (3-0) 96 3 3. Naperville Central (2) (2-1) 74 1 4. Gurnee Warren (2-1) 73 4…

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State-ranked Raiders showcase multiple weapons in rout of Marceline, Mo.

Quincy Notre Dame running back Ben Kasparie attempts to avoid three tacklers from Marceline during Friday night's game at Advance Physical Therapy Field. Pattie Paxton

QUINCY — The Quincy Notre Dame football team is developing an offense that can attack opponents in all sorts of ways. Calvin Lavery threw for 182 yards and two touchdowns, Elliott Maas and Ben Kasparie combined for 104 yards rushing and two touchdowns, Jackson Stratton caught five passes and two touchdowns, and six other receivers…

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Saturday rewind: Stratton continues delivering special teams plays for Raiders

Quincy Notre Dame's Jackson Stratton, right, has returned a blocked punt and a fumbled punt snap for touchdowns in the Raiders' first two games. Photo courtesy Brendan Saak

QUINCY — Jackson Stratton understands there is an expectation now. The Quincy Notre Dame junior linebacker scored on an opponent’s punt attempt for the second consecutive week when he scooped up Rock Island Alleman’s botched punt and returned it 2 yards into the end zone as part of a 59-0 whitewashing Friday night at Advance…

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Game Night Guide: Week 2 of prep football

Friday’s Schedule Rock Island Alleman at Quincy Notre Dame, 7 p.m. • WGEM 1440 AM, 98.9 FM Quincy High School at Alton, 7 p.m. • WTAD 930 AM Jefferson City at Hannibal, 7 p.m. • KHMO 1070 AM Central at Pleasant Hill, 7 p.m. • Central Illinois Sports on YouTube Calhoun at Unity-Payson, 7 p.m.…

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