Smith Leads Crespi Past Notre Dame

Notre Dame High controlled its destiny in its Mission League finale against Crespi on Friday, but Crespi quarterback Cody Smith and all-purpose player Ryan Kieling ruined it all.

Smith, who was wearing a flak jacket under his jersey to protect the bruised kidney and bruised ribs he suffered last week, completed back-to-back touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to give Crespi a 21-10 win at Pierce College.

Both teams had clinched playoff berths before the opening kickoff, but Notre Dame (6-3-1, 4-1-1 in league play) could have shared the league title and been the league’s top-seeded team if it could have held on to its 10-7 first-half lead. Notre Dame finished in third place, one game behind champion St. Paul (5-0-1). Crespi (8-2, 5-1) finished second.

Athletic directors from Notre Dame and St. Paul met Thursday for a coin toss that would determine which team would get the higher seeding if both schools won their final league game.

Notre Dame Coach Kevin Rooney, who also is the school’s athletic director, won the toss but kept it a secret from the team before the game.

St. Paul defeated Alemany, 24-14, to take the title and the top seeding. The Knights will be the third-seeded team from the Mission League.

Crespi regained the lead in the fourth quarter when Smith hit tight end Frank Romano over the middle for an 18-yard touchdown and a 14-10 advantage. Romano, a 6-foot-3, 218-pound senior, was hit by a host of tacklers but managed to bulldoze his way into the end zone.

It was Kieling’s 59-yard touchdown reception on the Celts’ next possession that put Notre Dame away. On third and 15, Smith hit Kieling in the right flat on a down-and-out pattern, and one quick move gave the receiver an open field.

“Before I caught the ball, I saw him coming up,” Kieling said. “I knew he was going to leave his feet and that if I put a move on him, he’d miss me.”

The defender did miss, and Kieling was on his way to his second touchdown. Kieling, who returns kickoffs and punts, was putting the moves on defenders all night, but he was doing it from a new position--tailback.

Kieling, who had carried just once--for two yards--before the game, finished with 49 yards in seven carries. The 5-foot-7, 143-pound senior also led all receivers with five catches for 85 yards.

Crespi opened the scoring on its second possession. Kieling took a handoff from Smith and made his way through heavy traffic on the left side before cutting back the opposite way for a 30-yard touchdown run.

Notre Dame responded with an 11-play, 51-yard drive on its next possession, but the Knights’ fourth-and-14 attempt picked up only 12 yards and Crespi took over at its 15.

Notre Dame defensive back Bob DaCorsi returned an interception 37 yards to make the score 7-7.